Fever
by peskypipistrelle
Summary: PaulxBella New Moon AU
1. Chapter 1

Bella sat in her idling truck, listening to the pounding rain beat down on the old red metal. Staring out the windshield at the small wooden house Jacob Black shared with his father, Billy; she hung her head. She had looked for her friend everywhere she could think of. Now, she sat in Jake's driveway, unwilling to give up the search, but had no idea where to look.

Just when Bella was about to back out of the gravel drive and check in her friend's usual spots once more, Jake stomped right by her, not even noticing the familiar truck in his drive.

At least, she _thought_ it was Jake. His beautiful long hair had been cropped short, and he was only wearing a pair of shorts and sneakers. Plus, he looked like he had grown a foot since she had last seen him a week ago.

Still, Bella quickly hopped down from her truck and ran after the retreating figure. _This was her chance._ "Jake!" She shouted at her friends back. He stopped, but did not turn to face her. "You cut your hair?" He finally turned around. "And got a tattoo?" So, it was Jake. He looked very little like _her_ Jake, however.

Jacob just sighed, like the weight of the world was bearing down on his shoulders. "Bella…"

"I thought you were too sick to come outside. Or pick up the phone when I called," she said. Bella wasn't so sure of her mission anymore. Jake was just standing there, looking at her with pity and resignation in his eyes.

"Go away."

"What?" Bella asked incredulously. _Why was he acting like this?_

"Go _away_."

"What happened to you? What's wrong?" Bella's normally bright and happy friend would barely even meet her eyes. "Hey, what happened? Did Sam get to you? Is that what's happening?"

The mention of Sam Uley finally seemed to cause some sort of reaction in her silent friend, and he sneered at Bella as he answered. "Sam's trying to _help_ me, don't blame him. But if you want somebody to blame, how about those filthy _bloodsuckers_ you love? The Cullen's." He spat the name at her like it disgusted him.

The blood drained from Bella's face. Jake knew. How did he know? She couldn't betray the Cullen's secrets, even though they had abandoned her. It just wasn't her story to tell. "I don't know what you're talking about." Bella struggled to keep her voice steady and her face straight. It didn't matter, she knew her friend could tell she was lying.

"You know _exactly_ what I'm talking about. You've been lying to everyone. Charlie…but you can't lie to me. Not anymore, Bella." Jake turned to walk away.

"Come on! Jacob!" Bella was begging him now. He was the only friend she had left. The only thing keeping her out of the pit of depression Edward had thrown her down. She would do whatever he wanted to keep him in her life.

"Look, Bella…we can't be friends anymore."

 _No!_ He was going to leave her, just like everyone else had. Her voice broke with the tears she was struggling to keep from falling. "Jake, I know that I've been…hurting you. It's…it's killing me. It kills me. If you, maybe, gave me some time…"

"Don't! It's not you."

"It's not you, it's me, right? Really?" She wasn't enough for him. Just like Edward.

"It's true! It _is_ me! I'm not good. I used to be…a great kid. Not anymore." He shook his head and stared out at the woods before stating, "It doesn't even _matter_ , alright? This is over."

She couldn't stop the tears from falling or her voice from breaking as she pleaded with Jake one last time. "You can't break up with me. I mean…you're my best friend. You promised me."

"I know. I promised that I wouldn't hurt you, Bella. And this is me keeping that promise. Go home. And don't come back. Or you're gonna get hurt." Not giving her a chance to respond, he turned and stormed past where Sam Uley and his gang of angry-looking shirtless men stood.

The rain was coming down harder now, plastering her hair against her face and gluing her clothes to her skin. But Bella couldn't make herself move. She just stood and stared as Jacob disappeared into the woods. Once again heartbroken and alone; she watched her best friend, her personal sun, break his promise and leave her behind.

* * *

Bella stood before Laurent, resigned to her fate.

After standing in the rain for close to an hour, it became clear that Jacob wasn't going to come back and tell her it had all been some sick joke. He wasn't going to laugh and ruffle her hair or wrap her in one of his tight hugs, resting his chin on the top of her head. So, she had forced herself back to her truck and driven around aimlessly. She found herself on a dead-end gravel road when she saw the dirt path that entered the woods.

Didn't take her long to run into Laurent, who of course saw right through her lies about the Cullen's whereabouts. And now she had no one left to save her from the nomad vampire.

Her eyes flickered shut as she whispered a goodbye to Edward and waited for her life to end.

Then she heard it; a deep snarl and rustling of branches from the dark woods to her right. An enormous black wolf stepped out from the tree line slowly and steadily, snarling and snapping its jaws. Four more wolves as large as the first followed closely behind.

They were beautiful. Powerful corded muscle rippled under thick fur as the giant wolves stalked forward, eyes trained on Laurent. A dark grey wolf, two lighter silver-toned wolves, and a russet-colored wolf now stood in the clearing behind the black wolf. The russet wolf was only inches away from her. She had to stop herself from reaching out and threading her hand through the soft-looking fur.

Somewhere in Bella's mind she knew she should be afraid of them, but she couldn't make herself feel fear. Maybe it was being seconds from death only moments before. Maybe it was because the wolves seemed to have all their focus on the vampire. All she knew is watching the giant predators prowl out of the woods had filled her with a sense of something close to…comfort.

Drool dripped from bared fangs and violent snarls rumbled from the throats of the five wolves that were quickly closing in on the vampire in front of her. Bella watched surprise and fear flash across Laurent's face before he took off running towards the other side of the clearing in a blur. The black wolf led the chase after him, flanked by three of the other wolves. The russet wolf turned its head to look at Bella. The beast towered over her, close enough to feel it's hot breath wash across her face as it panted. The chocolate brown eyes looked so familiar to her, but she didn't know why. Then a growl from one of the other wolves carried back to woman and beast, and the russet wolf was gone as quickly as it had arrived.

She watched in a trance as the wolves raced after the Laurent-shaped blur. The grass-covered ground shook under Bella's feet as the wolves thundered across the clearing after their prey. Laurent raised his hand and hit the black wolf as it reached him, throwing the wolf across the field. Without so much as a whimper, the black wolf was back on its feet, running to attack the vampire again.

The obvious muscle mass and sheer _size_ of the creatures should have prevented any real attempt at grace. The giant wolves defied the very laws of physics as they ducked and weaved, leaping over obstacles as they worked as a pack to take down the nomad vampire. Bella watched them run, in awe of the creatures that had so suddenly saved her from certain death. The wolves reached the woods on the other end of the clearing, and her trance broke. She quickly turned and ran into the woods where the wolves had first appeared.

* * *

It felt like hours had passed when Bella finally found the hidden dirt path that leading back to the gravel road where she had left her old red truck. Her hands shook as she pulled the unlocked driver's side door open, hopping up into the cab and collapsing on the worn bench seat with a frustrated, exhausted huff. Pushing the hair that was still wet from the earlier rainfall back out of her face, she gently shut the truck's door. Dropping her head to rest on the on the steering wheel with a light thunk, Bella tried to sort through the mess of thoughts running through her head.

A pack of giant, vampire-hunting wolves had come out of the forest, stopping Laurent mere _seconds_ before Bella became his dinner.

She had _just_ gotten used to the reality of vampires existing. Her life wasn't strange enough, let's add some horse-sized wolves. Her head had barely reached the beast's shoulders, for heaven's sake! There's no way those things _weren't_ supernatural. What was going on with this town that she had met a family of vampires here, and now this?

She was lightly banging her head against the steering wheel in frustration when a sharp rap on the driver's side window sounded.

Predictably, she and sat up abruptly with a loud screech, smacking her head into the hard metal above the top of the torn fabric bench seat.

Rubbing the back of her head, she turned to see Embry standing at her window, wearing only a pair of cut-off shorts and a nervous grin. Bella began to crank the old truck's window down, sucking in a deep breath. Hopefully he wouldn't notice the cuts on her face and hands from running through the brush in the woods. "Uh, hi, Embry. Why are you…what are you doing out here?" Bella stumbled slightly as she struggled to keep her voice steady.

He must have grown at least a half a foot since she had last seen him at the beach. Embry had always been attractive, but in a cute, puppyish kind of way. Now, he was at least 6'5" and he looked like he had been working out, too. He looked years older. It was something in his expression, the way he carried himself. Like he wasn't a kid anymore.

Tucking stray wet hair behind her ears, she narrowed her eyes slightly at the dark-skinned Quileute as she watched him fidget next to the truck.

 _What are you hiding?_ She wanted to ask Jacob's friend if he knew about the wolves that had just saved her life, but she obviously couldn't explain why her life had been in danger to begin with. Plus, for some reason she felt she needed to protect the wolves. Not that they would ever _need_ her protection. From what she had seen, they could protect themselves just fine. But still. _Best to keep it quiet for now,_ Bella thought.

"I didn't mean to scare you, Bella! Just saw your truck and wondered if you needed a hand. You're pretty far away from town." Embry ran his hand through his newly short-cropped hair, still not meeting her eyes for more than a few seconds at a time.

"I'm fine, Embry. I went for a walk in the woods. I just got back when you showed up." Bella knew she sounded annoyed, but she didn't care. He was obviously not telling her something. "I'm gonna head home now. I'm sure you have to go meet Sam, right?"

"Wait. Bella," Embry ignored her sarcastic question and held up a hand. "Stay out of these woods, okay? They're not safe."

Bella stopped rolling up the window to shake her head at the boy that was quickly becoming a man. Meeting Embry's eyes with a look she hoped showed how serious she was, she bit out, "I am so beyond done with people telling me what to do. I'll go where I want, when I want. If people aren't going to trust me with the truth, then I'm done trusting these vague warnings I'm expected to blindly follow." She started to roll the window back up. "Bye, Embry," she finished softly, all the fight gone from her voice. Turning the key that had been left in the ignition when she left for her walk, she pulled the truck out of park and slowly drove off; leaving Embry to watch her go, a defeated look on his handsome face.

* * *

After leaving Bella in his yard, Jacob decided he was going to go for a run; a normal, human run, to burn off some energy. He hadn't made it a mile down the road when he spotted Quil. _Shit_.

Sam had told the Pack that Quil would probably Phase soon. He hoped it would hurry the fuck up. He remembered how he shitty it had felt seeing Embry with Sam and the others. Like his friend had abandoned him. Quil had been trying to get ahold of him nearly as much as Bella had.

Except Quil had known Jake much longer than Bella had. He knew all Jake's hiding spots and secret places. It had made avoiding Quil a lot harder than avoiding Bella.

As Jake approached Quil, who appeared to be out walking, he slowed his run to a quick jog. Maybe he could just kind of nod at him as he passed and Quil would let him go.

Passing Quil, Jake glanced at his friend and gave him a single nod before picking up his pace.

"Jacob Ephraim Black! Are you fucking kidding me?"

 _Fuck_. Jake stopped and stared at his shoes. The only pair of shoes he had left. Of _course_ it couldn't be that easy. With the day he was having, why would he expect anything else?

"What, Quil. I'm busy." Jacob tried to sound casual, like he was just out for a run and hadn't been ignoring his closest friend. The friend he had bonded with before either of them were old enough to remember. The friend that had listened to him bitch and moan about Bella since she had moved back and promptly jumped into the bloodsucker's arms. Jake wanted nothing more than to tell Quil what was happening. He would have, too, if Sam hadn't stopped him with an alpha order. Sam said it was some bullshit tribal law that Jake had no desire to try to understand. _It was just another way for the tribal elders to control the Pack,_ Jake thought angrily _._

"Yeah, you've been _real_ fucking busy, haven't you?" Quil's voice was shaking with anger. "What the hell is going on? Why are you hanging around with Sam like the rest of those assholes?" Quil was marching towards Jake now, a determined plastered to his face.

Jake held up his hands, trying to pacify his long-time friend. "Wait, Quil, calm down."

But Quil didn't look like he _could_ calm down. " _Don't_ tell me what to do. You know _something_. Why won't anyone fucking _talk_ to me?" He was yelling now, stomping closer to Jake, who just stood there, unable to give Quil what he wanted. He shoved Jake, hard. "Answer me!"

Jake didn't know what the hell to do. Sam's alpha order bound him against talking to Quil about the wolves. He couldn't tell Quil a damn thing. He couldn't say anything to help him through this. So he just stood there, opening and closing his mouth like a fish.

Quil shoved Jake again. "What the hell is _wrong_ with you? Say something!"

Jake was shaking with anger. He wasn't great at controlling his anger yet, and Quil pushing him around and shouting at him was not helping. His voice came out deathly quiet, dripping with barely contained rage. "Stop _pushing_ me, Quil."

Quil's face twisted into a satisfied smirk. "Or what? You gonna do something about it?" He shoved Jake again, harder now. Quil looked annoyed that he wasn't able to move his friends new muscle-bound body an inch.

"Quil, back up." Sam's voice called out as he walked from the woods, quiet, but strangely compelling. Still, Quil stood his ground.

"I'm not going _anywhere_ until someone tells me what's got this asshole all wound up." He turned back to Jake, who looked like he was struggling to stay still, arms straight down at his sides, hands balled tight into fists. He looked like he was about to snap. "You doing drugs now, Jake?"

The words had barely left Quil's mouth, when suddenly Jake was inches from his face. "I'm not on fucking drugs!" Jake roared at his friend, before finally shoving Quil back.

Except Jake wasn't just _human_ anymore. He wasn't human and he _wasn't_ in control. Quil went flying back across the road, the back of his skull cracking loudly against the pavement.

The anger drained out of Jacob instantly as he saw what he had done. Running to where Quil was lying still on the concrete, he collapsed to his knees and put his head in his hands. Sam reached Quil just after Jake, gently rolling the young man on his side to check the extent of his injuries. Finding his pulse slow but constant, and his breathing shallow but steady; he decided that Quil was going to wake up with a skull-pounding headache, but would probably be fine otherwise. Sam could tell that Quil's body temperature was much higher than a human's should be. The transformation had already begun, and his accelerated healing would take care of the injuries much faster than if he was human.

"He's going to be okay. Jake, go run it off. Calm down. I'll get Quil home." Sam's voice was quiet, but laced with the strength of his alpha position. He watched as the angry young man stomped to the edge of the road, stopping when he got the edge of the woods. Jake looked back at Sam hunched over Quil's lifeless body and felt the fury at what he had done to his closest friend rip through him like wildfire.

He was helpless to stop the Phase from tearing through his body, breaking his bones and shredding his clothes and the last pair of shoes he owned. Billy wasn't going to be happy with him.

The russet wolf turned back to the woods and ran.

* * *

Bella had more questions than answers as she drove down the gravel road leading to the rural highway.

 _What had happened today in the clearing? What did it have to do with the vampires? Had Edward known about the wolves when he left her in the woods? Did he know, and still leave her alone?_

She still felt the hole Edward had left with his absence throbbing, but she wondered if it was more the ease at which the entire Cullen family had abandoned her that had really broken her. Edward had known how worried she was about him growing bored with her simple human life. Yet he waited until _after_ he had her trust to yank the rug out from under her and abandon her in the very woods that he warned weren't safe. If Edward had _actually_ believed the wolves were dangerous, why would he leave her unprotected and let Sam Uley be the one to find her and carry her limp body home to Charlie?

Bella pulled into the driveway of the house she shared with her dad, Charlie. Her rusty old truck groaned and moaned and creaked before grinding to a halt in her usual parking spot. The spot her dad's cop car sat when he wasn't working was empty. Checking her watch, she realized she still had a few hours before he'd be home. He'd reminded her this morning that he was going to be covering a young deputy's shift and would be working late. He wouldn't be home until close to midnight. She was getting hungry, however, and figured she'd get dinner started set aside a plate for him for when he made it home. It was Thursday night, but there was no school this Friday. The cafeteria at lunchtime today had been filled with students sharing their plans for the long weekend. Bella's only plans involved a good book and her favorite spot on the couch.

Stepping down from her truck, Bella walked up to the first house she had ever lived in. The paint was much more faded and worn and chipped than it once was, but it had an overwhelming sense of _home_ that she had just never felt at the places Renee found for them to live in the years following her split from Charlie. She took the steps leading up to the front door two at a time, tripping on the top step. Catching herself against the solid front door, she fished her house key out of the pocket of her zip-up hoody. As she fit the key in the lock, she paused. Bella could feel eyes watching her. Whipping around and eyeing the tree-line beside the house, she squinted as she tried to see into the darkness surrounding the woods.

She couldn't see anything. Stupid, useless, human eyes. _If I were a vampire, I would know right away what was out there._ But she would never be able to see Charlie, Renee, Angela…or Jake, ever again if she was turned. _Was she really willing to give up her family, her friends, her whole life for an eternity with Edward and his family_? The same family that had packed up and left town with even saying goodbye?

She huffed out another annoyed sigh. _Jake_. Her good-natured, light-hearted best friend who had _sworn_ to her he would always be there. _It obviously wasn't so hard for Jake to give her up, after all. What was wrong with her that made everyone leave just as soon as she opened up to them?_ The things he said to her today…those weren't Jacobs words. That haircut, the same tattoo on his arm that the rest of Sam's cult had…Jake was in trouble.

Bella tried and failed once more to see what might be lurking in the woods, before shaking her head and turning back to go in the house. She figured her nerves were probably on edge after the day's events. Kicking off her shoes at the mat beside the door, she unzipped her hoody and draped it over the back of the couch. Time to get dinner started. Opening the fridge, she pulled out the pork chops that she had defrosted for tonight's meal, and started to prepare dinner.

When she had finished her meal, set aside a plate for Charlie, and cleaned up the kitchen, Bella stepped out the back door with the trash. She tossed the bag in the bin before zipping up her blue hoody halfway and plopping down in one of the faded Adirondack chairs on the deck. Staring out at the woods, she let her mind drift to thoughts of thick fur, brown eyes, and powerful muscles. _Had her protectors been able to kill Laurent?_

Those giant creatures had to be here for a reason, and Bella didn't think it was eating random hikers in the woods. _Otherwise, why hadn't they attacked her as well_? It would have been so easy for that russet toned wolf to rip her throat out, and he had looked at her…gently. Softly, and with those chocolate brown eyes that were so familiar. _No, they hadn't been there to hurt her_.

It felt like a whole different world in Forks. She had loved the warm weather and perpetually sunny skies of Arizona, and had only moved by Charlie so she wouldn't be a burden to Renee. Here in Forks, it was cooler and rained more than she would like. But her pale skin hadn't been sunburned once since she moved, and the air seemed so crisp and clean here. Besides, she just wasn't the same naive girl that had packed up her life and moved back to her hometown. She had fallen in love, had her heart broken. Bella had learned that the world wasn't as easy to understand as she had thought. There were things out there that she never would have imagined.

It was hard for her to understand why she felt so much more at peace than she had just this morning. Since leaving the house that morning, she had been broken up with by her best friend and been saved from near death by a pack of giant wolves. There was more to this thing with Jake than him not wanting to be friends with her anymore. That was clear from the way he was acting. And she was going to find out what was going on. Jacob had pulled Bella from her pit of despair, and now it was time to return the favor.

Bella dragged in a deep breath of the air that smelled like fresh rain and pine trees and slowly leaned back in the old wooden chair. The stars seemed so much brighter here, too. It was difficult to feel empty and alone staring up at the shining and sparkling specks of light in the now black sky. The moon was almost full and the only sounds she could hear were the light rustling of leaves and the occasional car passing in the front of the house.

After an hour of staring at the stars and enjoying the silence and solitude she could no longer ignore the late spring chill. With a sigh, she stood and turned to go back inside, catching her foot on the leg of the chair. Bella ungracefully belly-flopped onto the deck, barely stopping herself from smacking her face into the damp wood. She laid sprawled across the deck for a moment, cursing herself for being so damn clumsy.

Grumbling, she pulled herself back up, dusting off her legs. Once again turning to go inside, movement from the edge of the woods caught her eye. A large pair of eyes glowed at her as the faint outline of one of her protectors became clearer. Bella could just make out the shape of the wolf's large head, solid chest, and powerful front legs as it took several large steps out of forest before stopping to stare at her.

It was _huge_. Her heart was beating wildly in her chest as she slowly and quietly inched towards the dark grey wolf, her hands held out in what she hoped was a non-threatening way.

In the only the dim light of the moon and stars, the giant animal stood in the grass, strong and proud and silent, watching the small woman shuffle her way closer to him.

Bella stopped about twenty feet from the beautiful creature, dropped her hands to her sides, and waited for something to happen. Her heart was thumping and she was shaking like a leaf, but she knew, knew _without a single doubt_ , that he was not here to hurt her.

"Thank you for saving my life." Bella's voice came out clear and steady, but barely a louder than a whisper as she stood in awe of the mythical wolf in front of her.

The pair stood in silence for several moments until the wolf turned his massive grey head, listening to sounds far too faint for her human ears. With another short glance back at Bella, it turned and trotted into the woods, disappearing into the darkness like a ghost.


	2. Chapter 2

Several minutes after the wolf had vanished into the trees, the sound of gravel crunching signaled Charlie's arrival as he pulled the squad car into the driveway. Peeking back at the dark woods once last time, Bella rubbed the chill away from her arms and headed back to the house.

She didn't bother to flip the lock on the sliding glass door after it was shut. A flimsy lock wasn't going to stop the types of creatures that might want to harm her.

"Hey Cha-…Dad. How was work?" Bella's cheeks flushed as she misspoke.

Charlie pretended not to notice her slipup, like he had every other time. "Boring. Meetings all day long." He replied over his shoulder as he opened the fridge to check for leftovers of his daughters delicious cooking.

"There's a plate for you in the oven, dad. I'm gonna head up to bed." Bella's warm smile was so welcome to Charlie, after months of nothing but sadness and silence from the girl.

Charlie returned her smile. "Thanks, sweetheart. Sleep good." He watched his only child head for the stairs leading to the upper level of the house before quietly calling out to her as she moved to take the first step. "Bella? You still havin' those nightmares?"

"No, dad. Not anymore." Bella's said, her voice soft as she continued up the stairs. Charlie's brow furrowed at the lie, wondering if she would ever trust him enough to open up to him.

He stared at the empty stairs long after she had closed the door to her bedroom, thinking about all the things he would do differently for his daughter if he had the chance to go back. Back to that day he had come home from work to find his wife packing her bags in the small bedroom they shared. He knew it was no secret in this town that he had never been the same after his wife left him, taking his little girl with her.

Charlie had barely been able to string two words together as he watched the only woman he had ever loved load up the taxi with just two small suitcases. In his head, he was screaming, begging her not to go, telling her all the ways he loved her but didn't know how to put into words. Renee had been his entire world. How could she not have seen that? Why hadn't that been enough for her? And then she had given him that beautiful baby girl, and he had been ruined for any other woman. Charlie had tears in his eyes when he saw his daughter for the first time. He had vowed right then to spend what was left of his life protecting his sweet baby girl from anything, or anyone, that might try to harm her.

But he had failed.

Only three months later, Renee had left him. He convinced himself that one month every summer was enough time with his little girl. He should have known that Renee wouldn't be the parent she needed, instead making Bella fill the role of caretaker. He should have pushed for more time with her, called to check in like he always thought about doing. Hearing his little girl's voice, so faraway sounding over the tinny phone connection, had left that hole in his chest wide open, and he had hardly ever made himself dial the numbers.

It had taken Charlie months to pull himself out of the depression he fell into after they left. Billy Black did his best to help him through, but he just didn't understand. Billy had a wife who loved him and three little kids to watch grow. Charlie had nothing but an empty house and regrets. The hollow, dead look eventually faded from his eyes, but he never moved on from Renee, instead passing the years as a terminal bachelor. The days, months, and years had marched slowly on, but Charlie stayed stuck at the end of the driveway in 1987, watching the cloud of dust behind the taxi that carried his whole world away from him.

And now, his little girl was almost grown. She had come back to him, given him that second chance he had wanted…but was it too late now to fix the damage that was already done?

He had failed her twice. By letting Renee take her away from him without a fight. And then, when he got her back, what did he do? He let her go with that slimy piece of shit, Edward. It had been obvious from the first time he met him; that kid was bad news.

Now, he had to stand by and watch her get hurt again, this time by someone he had trusted. Hell, Charlie had pushed his daughter to spend more time with his best friend's boy, hoping the friendship Bella and Jacob had shared as children would pull her out of the depression she fell into after that prick led her out to the woods to break her heart.

Charlie had lost the contents of his stomach into the bushes next to his driveway when he saw Sam Uley come walking out of the woods carrying Bella in his arms. He had thought she was dead. After carrying her to bed and wrapping her in blankets, Charlie had stormed over to the Cullen's house in a fit of rage. Finding the house empty and hearing that the entire Cullen family had abruptly left town was the only solace he found after seeing his daughter in that state. As he sat in the chair beside Bella's bed that night and watched her fitfully sleep, he plotted what he would do to that son of a bitch if he ever showed his face in Charlie's town again.

When day had come and he watched Bella begin to wake up, he could tell the exact moment she remembered what had happened the day before. He watched her body go rigid and her eyes flicker open, finding him staring down at her.

Charlie couldn't help but think, as he saw the hollow, dead look in her once bright hazel eyes, that maybe he had more in common with his daughter than he thought.

* * *

The old screen door slammed shut behind Jacob as he stormed out of the small wooden cabin. He was _so fucking sick_ of listening to what Sam thought was best!'Stay away from Bella, Jacob.' 'Don't tell Bella anything about the wolves, Jacob.' 'You can't see Bella until you learn how to control your rage, Jacob.' Sam was a fucking jerk.

 _No, he wasn't_. _What would Jacob had done if he had phased and no one had been there to help?_ It wasn't Sam's fault. It was the fucking Cullen's fault.

"FUCK!"

He stomped out to the woods that surrounded his house and roared his anger at the treetops. Jacob knew he needed to learn how to control his newfound temper, but it didn't seem to be getting any easier.

At least Quil had finally woke up late last night and phased almost immediately after. Jake had gone by to see how his friend was doing when Quil had ran out of his house and tackled him. Less than five minutes later, the two wolves ran through the woods together, all fighting forgotten. At least Quil understood now why Jake couldn't tell him anything.

Bella, on the other hand, was a different story. Sam kept telling him that once he got his wolf under control, he could at least start spending time with Bella again. That's if she would even talk to him after the awful things he had said to her yesterday.

He wasn't allowed to tell her about his wolf, which he thought was fucking stupid, because apparently, Bella knew _all_ about the vampires. He was still trying to let go of his residual rage from the fight in the clearing yesterday. _How could she be so stupid?_ Watching her resign herself to death in front of that bloodsucker had been almost too much for Jacob. Knowing that their fight from earlier had to play a role in that was making him crazy. He couldn't imagine how alone Bella must feel. The only thing that had stopped him from bursting out of the woods and ripping the leech's throat out was Sam's alpha order to stay put. But Jake had seen the look on her face for a split second before he raced after the leech with Sam and the Pack. _Bella had recognized him!_ Jacob had told her the stories of his ancestors, of her precious boyfriend and his family, when she had first moved back to town. Now all she needed to do was put two and two together.

He just needed to see her again, and soon. He could tell her that he had been sick, and had to catch up with schoolwork. Maybe she'd believe that's why he had ignored all her phone calls. No, she would probably just come over and try to help him with his homework. Bella was sweet like that. She couldn't know that he didn't even _have_ homework anymore, because he'd dropped out of high school to be a protector full-time. She'd be so disappointed in him. _This is such fucking bullshit_! He raked his hands through his hair and bellowed his displeasure at the trees again.

Jacob was about to work out his irritation on the tree closest to him when he heard the faint sounds of one of his Pack members approaching. Last week, he wouldn't have been able to hear things like pine needles moving on the forest floor, or fur rubbing against bark. His sense of smell had also become so much sharper, even in human form. He turned in the direction of the approaching wolf and waited for Embry to reach him.

He didn't have to wait long.

Embry trotted up to where his frustrated friend stood and nudged him with his giant silver head.

"Can't I just be alone for two fucking minutes?" Jake turned away from his friend to stare out into the woods, waiting for Embry to Phase and tell him why he was here.

"Not anymore, brother," Embry said with a laugh.

"What do you want?" Jake snapped. He was so mad all the time now. He turned back to his friend. Embry was pulling up the shorts he kept tied around his leg. Seeing each other naked all the damn time had been…an adjustment. It even pissed him off that the constant nudity didn't seem like such a big deal anymore.

"I talked to Bella yesterday. Thought you'd want to know."

Jake's eyes drifted shut as he let out a deep sigh. "Yeah? How's she doing?"

Embry shifted from foot to foot uncomfortably. "She seemed ok, I guess…maybe a little mad. I told her she should stay out of the woods. She said that until someone gave her a reason, she would do what she wants."

 _Goddamnit, Bella._ Why did she always have to pick the worst times to be stubborn?

Embry could see his friend getting upset. "I'm sure she'll calm down when she has a chance to think about it. I mean…she's probably feeling pretty shitty after yesterday. That fight you guys had was brutal. And then that whole thing with the leech…"

"What the fuck was I _supposed_ to say to her?! You know Sam ordered me to keep my mouth shut!" Jake could feel his anger ramping up as he yelled at his friend.

"Yeah, I know. He said you couldn't tell her you were a wolf. You probably could have been a little easier on her, though. Told her you needed some time alone, or something. I don't know." Embry dragged his hand through his hair, frustrated. "You didn't see her face after you walked away, Jake. She just stood there in the rain, like she was waiting for you to come back."

"It's not safe for her to be around me, Em! Look what I did to Quil! How long before I hurt her, too? She deserves better than me." Jake swept his arm around him, looking back at the tiny wooden house he shared with his dad. "She deserves better than this. At least that leech, Cullen, could take care of her. I can't even buy myself a new pair of shoes."

Embry's voice was soft as he considered what Jacob was saying. "Seems to me like she wants to make those decisions for herself, that's all I'm saying, Jake."

Jake snorted sarcastically. Embry's heart was in the right place, but he didn't know what the fuck he was talking about. It wasn't safe for Bella to be around him.

"You know what's got Paul's so pissed? After we burned the leech and you took off, Paul couldn't Phase back. He went off in the woods alone to calm down."

Jacob frowned as he considered what could make the most volatile wolf in the Pack lose the iron-clad control he had over himself. "No clue. He seemed fine this morning." Jake's laughed dryly before he added, "Well, as fine as Paul ever is. That dude is fucked up."

Embry nodded, mulling over his friend's words, before saying goodbye and heading home.

Jake thought about Embry's question as he watched him leave. Paul _was_ messed up. It wasn't really Paul's fault, though. Everyone on the Rez knew that he had lived a hard life. He couldn't have been more than five when his mom had walked out. He was left alone with his dad, a mean drunk that liked to take his anger out on his only son. His dad finally drank himself to death when Paul was fourteen. Everything after that was kind of a mystery. There were all sorts of rumors, but no one really knew what happened. The only thing that everyone agreed on was that Paul wasn't quite right. When no one could track down his mother and no next of kin came forward, he was allowed to live alone. The elders didn't think he would do well in a group home. They probably knew the Phase was coming and didn't want him to kill anyone. _Who knows_.

What _was_ clear is that something serious had to be bothering Paul for him to have problems controlling the Phase. The thought of Paul _not_ having control over his wolf would be almost laughable, if not for the fact that he was the most lethal of any of them. Before he had Phased for the first time, he was a force to be reckoned with. He had learned to fight at a young age - to protect himself from his father, no doubt. Now, he was nearly 21 years old and had years of experience combined with a body powerful enough to literally crush a human into ash, if he so desired.

Add to that, he was the only one in the Pack that was able to completely shield his thoughts from the rest of them. The only time he communicated using the Pack mind was if he _wanted_ to. Which wasn't very often, really. He usually just listened, only chiming in if needed.

Jake shuddered to think of what kind of damage Paul could do if he lost control over his wolf.

* * *

After getting ready for bed, Bella bounced onto the flannel covered mattress and pulled her poufy down comforter up to her chin. Clicking the lamp on her bedside table off, she scooted down, laid back, and stared at the ceiling, willing herself to drift to sleep quickly.

She had decided while brushing her teeth before bed that she was going to get some answers first thing tomorrow morning. Having no idea where to find an answer for her giant wolf conundrum, she was instead going to figure out what in the hell was _really_ making Jake tell her they couldn't be friends anymore. Enough was enough.

 _Her_ Jake was sweet and thoughtful and caring. He was everything she could want in a boyfriend. But try as she might, she just didn't feel anything more than strong friendship for him. They were Jake and Bells. He was her best friend.

What if there wasn't anything wrong with Jake? What if he had just finally realized that Bella was nothing special and not worth his time?

Bella quickly put that thought out of her mind as she spat the last of toothpaste into the sink. There was no point in thinking about things like that until she knew more. She rinsed out her mouth, shut off the bathroom light, and went to get in bed.

Thirty minutes later, Bella stared at the ceiling, watching the shadows of the trees move with the wind outside. She was wide awake. Turning her head to the little wood table that sat next to her bed, she checked the clock for the tenth time in as many minutes. The red numbers glowed 1:38.

Huffing in annoyance as she threw the back the covers, she slid out of bed and padded over to the window seat. Her feet were silent on the chilly wood floor. Curling up in her favorite spot, she leaned her head against the wall next to the window and stared out at the woods where her beautiful protector had appeared just a few hours before.

Bella could hardly believe her eyes when the grey wolf once again stepped out of the woods before sitting on the grass and turning its huge head up to where she watched from her window.

Jumping up, she ran through the house as quickly and quietly as she could. She burst out on the deck, not bothering with shoes. Running slower now, off the deck and into the wet grass, she kept going until she stood only a few feet in front of the wolf.

 _Now what?_

When she left her room, her only thought had been getting to her wolf before he vanished again. Now that she was actually in front of him…she didn't know what she was supposed to do.

She didn't have to wait long to find out.

Standing and shaking out his thick grey fur, the grey wolf closed the space between them. She held her breath as he… _was he sniffing her_? The animal nosed at the hair that she had tied up in a messy bun, wisps of chestnut hair escaping from its place when she had tossed and turned in bed. The cold nose on her exposed neck startled her and she giggled. "Stop that!" She told him, laughing.

He gently bumped the side of his head against her cheek, nuzzling her face with his. Then, pulling back to look down at her with an inquisitive tilt to his massive head, he turned to the forest and began walking back the way he had come.

"Wait!" Bella didn't want him to disappear so soon. "Don't leave yet." He was staring at her again now, deep brown eyes gleaming in the bright light of the moon. He began to slowly circle her, and when he stood behind her gave her a gentle nudge in the direction of the forest before taking off at a run towards the trees.

 _He wanted her to follow him_! Bella figured she had totally lost her mind as she shrugged her shoulders and ran after the beast, trying to find the spot she had seen him enter the woods. Rushing past the tree-line into the quiet forest, she immediately tripped over the roots of a large oak not even ten feet past edge of the woods. Landing on her hands and knees on a soft bed of pine needles, she looked around for any signs of her grey friend.

The wolf stepped into view and snorted at her when he saw her apparent landing spot.

"Really? Did you seriously just _laugh_ at me?" After she stood and dusted herself off for what felt like the hundredth time that day, Bella tried to glare at him threateningly.

Snorting again, the wolf turned to walk away, before looking back at her to see if she was going to follow. Bella tried to keep up with the giant wolf's footsteps before he noticed her struggling and slowed down to a more manageable pace. They walked in silence for a time before the animal stopped and sat down.

Bella looked around, trying to figure out why he had brought her here, when her breath caught in her chest. She had collapsed from exhaustion and curled in a ball on the ground right where she now stood. This is where Sam Uley had found her after she become hopelessly lost in the woods.

"Why are we here?" She looked to the wolf for some clue, but he showed no signs of understanding her question as he yawned a squeaky lupine yawn and watched her become more confused.

He had to know something. _Had he seen her in the woods that day when Edward left? Was he trying to tell her something?_ Bella's head swam with the possible meaning behind being here, in this exact spot.

Lowering herself to sit on the soft needles that covered the forest floor, she laid back and stared at the tree tops. The last time she had been here, she was covered in mud and soaked to the bone from the heavy rain. Her hair was plastered to her face as she stumbled through the woods, trying to find her way back home. She was ice cold and her teeth were clattering, but the only thing she had felt was despair. Like she would never feel alive again.

She felt alive now.

The chapter of her life in which she lived and breathed for Edward's love was over. Even with the pain and loneliness she still felt in his absence, she wasn't sorry for what had happened between her and the vampire. She may not have been enough for him, but she didn't exactly blame him for that. She knew she would never be able to measure up to all the things he had seen and experienced in his many years of life. Or death.

She let herself love him and trust him completely, and she did not regret that. In return, Edward had played with her like a cat with a mouse, tossing her aside when he was done with her.

It was time to move on and live her life. She couldn't be her father, stuck in love with a woman who, in all likelihood, had probably never loved him the way he loved her.

Feeling surer of herself than she had in ages, she stood and dusted the pine needles off her butt and the back of her legs. Turning to the wolf that had sat patiently while she was deep in thought, she softly told him, "I think I understand why you brought me here. I still don't know how you knew what this place was, but thank you. I think I can move on now." She felt kind of silly, talking to the giant creature that seemed to know so much more about her than she knew about him. "I guess I'll head home now?"

The grey wolf just sat there, watching her as if she mildly interested him.

When the woman began to start the trek back to her house, he stepped in front of her, blocking her path and lowered himself like he wanted her to climb on his back.

"What are you – you want me to get on your back?" _This was getting really strange_. "Are you going to bite me if I try to climb up?" Turning his head to look back at her, he gestured to his back with a toss of his large head. "Ok, fine. Hold on a minute." She fixed her messy hair in a quick ponytail before reaching across the wolf's shoulders to pull herself up across his back. As soon as she was situated, he took off at a sprint. Bella screeched and wrapped her arms around the animal's thick furry neck so she didn't fly off.

They flew through the woods, the wolf navigating the dark forest with ease. He seemed to know exactly where every tree stump, boulder, and curve of the path was. Bella was just struggling to hold on, her hands gripped deep in the grey fur, face pressed in the soft scruff of his neck. Slowing down, the pair reached the edge of the forest, coming to a clearing on the edge of a cliff. He held still, allowing the small woman to climb off his back.

Bella walked closer to the edge of the cliff, staring out at the water. The wind had picked up while they were deep in the woods, and she watched the waves crashed against the side of the cliff, far below her feet. The strong breeze blew her hair back from her face, and she could almost taste the salt in the air.

Words couldn't describe how beautiful this place was. The top of the cliff was covered in lush, deep blue-green grass. It was near daybreak, and Bella could see out across the ocean for miles. It didn't appear that there was any other way to get here other than through the woods. She couldn't hear any cars nearby – although the sounds of waves beating into the rock probably would have covered any vehicle noises – even still, it didn't seem like they were anywhere near civilization.

There was absolutely no way she would be able to find her way home if she were alone here. That thought didn't scare her like it should, even having been left in the woods before. Bella moved a safe distance back from the edge before sitting cross-legged on the soft grass. The wolf had been watching the woman take in her surroundings and when she sat he laid down behind her, allowing her to lean against back him.

She absentmindedly rubbed him behind the ears as she stared out across the water in awe. "This is the most beautiful place I have ever seen." Bella told the wolf.

They sat together in silence, watching the dark sky lighten. As dawn's first light broke through the darkness, orange and pink and purple lights dancing around the sun as it rose; the hole that had gaped wide in Bella's chest for months began to stitch itself closed.


	3. Chapter 3

When Bella finally made it back to the woods behind her house, it was close to 7 am. At the edge of the woods, the wolf stopped to let her climb down from his back. She covered her mouth, unable to stop the huge yawn from escaping. Any exhaustion she was feeling now was _so_ worth staying out all night. She reached up to scratch the soft grey fur behind his ears before burying her face in his neck. Her wolf smelled like pine trees and clean ocean air. Bella pulled back before she asked hesitantly, "Will I see you again?"

Sticking his cold nose in her neck, he chuffed in her ear before licking across her cheek with a big, wet tongue.

"Ew. I'm going to take that as a yes. Stay safe while you're off hunting vampires, or whatever it is you do all day, ok?"

The wolf replied by nudging her in the direction of her house with his snout.

"Alright, alright. I'm going."

Bella begrudgingly trudged to the back door and quietly let herself inside. She was lucky that Charlie would be sleeping in today after working late yesterday. She would have had a tough time trying to explain where she had been all night.

' _No, dad, I wasn't out with a boy, I was running through the woods with a giant wolf. He saved me from the vampire that almost killed me yesterday afternoon, so I knew he was probably safe._ '

Something told her that Charlie wouldn't buy it.

She shut her bedroom door behind her with a soft click. Catching a glance at herself in her vanity mirror, she realized she looked like a hot mess. Her dancing llama print fleece pajama pants were caked with mud and her light blue cotton top wasn't much better off. Her normally shiny, chestnut brown hair was still up in the haphazard ponytail she had stuck it in earlier, but it hung off her head loosely; only about two-thirds of the hair still contained by the hair tie. The hair that had escaped looked to be one big snarl. Bella plucked several pine needles and a small twig from her messy hair before resolving to deal with it tomorrow. She looked like a disaster zone, but her cheeks were flushed pink and she couldn't stop the huge grin that was stuck on her face. Bella was _happy_. She grabbed a fresh pair of pajamas from her bottom dresser drawer and quickly changed before crawling into bed and pulling the covers up to her chin once again.

Her urgent plans to find Jacob and confront him didn't seem so urgent anymore. She figured she would take a quick nap and then head out to the reservation. Her head had barely hit the pillow before she was fast asleep.

For the first time in months, Bella slept without nightmares. Instead, she dreamed of her wolf's cliff and a mysterious dark-haired Quileute man that she had never seen before.

* * *

When Bella finally woke, the bright sun shining through her window and the clock's glowing red numbers told her it was a quarter past one. In the afternoon! She hadn't slept that late since before she had moved to Forks. Charlie must think she was dead. She threw back the covers and shuffled downstairs, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. Noticing how quiet it was in the house, she peeked out the front window to find that her dad's police cruiser wasn't in the driveway. Charlie wasn't even home.

The note on the kitchen table caught her eye and she made her way across the room. She smiled as she recognized her dad's messy handwriting.

 _Bella –_

 _You were pretty out of it this morning. I had to go in your room to make sure you were alive. I'm going fishing with Harry Clearwater. You know how to find me if you need something. Love ya._

– _Dad_

 _P.S – I'm glad you're sleeping better._

Bella knew that meant Charlie and Harry would sit out on the lake, catch nothing, then head back to Harry's house to drink beer and yell at the TV. He probably wouldn't even be home tonight. Heading back upstairs to take a quick shower, she planned what she was going to say to Jake when she found him. This time, she wasn't leaving without some answers.

Bella pounded on the old wood door for the third time. "I know you're in there, Jake!"

The door finally opened, but it was not her young Quileute friend, instead his dad, Billy, who had answered. "Bella." His voice was flat and emotionless, but she would not be deterred.

"I need to see him."

"He's not in." Billy told her.

"I'm sorry, I really need to see him." Bella pushed through the door and stepped around Billy's wheelchair, walking the familiar short path to her best friend's room.

"Bella?" She heard Billy call out behind her, but the determined woman didn't slow her pace. Swinging Jake's bedroom door open, she opened her mouth to yell, only to find Jake fast asleep, face down on his bed. For a second, Bella thought about waking her sleeping friend, but she just couldn't bring himself to do it. He had looked so exhausted yesterday.

Through the window above Jake's bed, she could see Sam Uley striding out of the woods. He wasn't alone. Bella recognized Embry and Jared, and a third man that she didn't know. All four wore only a pair of cut-off shorts and shoes, which was apparently the required uniform.

Alright, she would let Jake sleep. In the meantime, she was going to give Sam Uley a piece of her mind. She shut her slumbering friend's door softly behind her before storming out to where Sam stood. Examining the group as she approached, she realized that all four of the men all had to be over six and a half feet tall respectively. Without shirts on, it was easy to see that they were all absurdly muscular. Jared, Sam, and Embry all had the same tribal tattoo she had spotted on Jacob's upper arm yesterday. The other Quileute man had more tattoos on both arms and across his chest. She could see one that wrapped around his side from his back. And there on his arm was the same tribal tattoo as the others.

All four men had slightly different shades of deep brown hair and the beautiful copper skin that was a feature of the Quileute tribe, and damn it if they weren't all _unbelievably_ attractive. Bella felt a bit less confident as she reached the towering group of males, but she took a deep breath and steeled her resolve. _This was about Jake_. Sam and these other men had something to do with Jake's turmoil, she just knew it.

"What did you do?" She shoved Sam back, hard. Holy Crow, he was strong. It was like trying to shove a brick wall. "Okay, what did you do?" She shoved him again.

"Hey!" Sam protested mildly, but he didn't seem upset that she was attacking him.

Shoving Sam a third time; she questioned him again, "What did you do to him?" She didn't know what had gotten into her. She just knew she couldn't lose Jake.

"Easy!" Sam's stern voice called out an order, but not at Bella. He was trying to hold back the man to his right. _Was he going to attack her, or something?_

Looking back at Sam, Bella tried to make him understand, "He didn't want this!"

"But we do?" The Quileute man she didn't know was almost lunging at her now; handsome face twisted into a wry sneer. "What did he do? What did he tell you?"

Sam held back the man as he bit out a stern warning, "Both of you, calm _down_."

Bella ignored Sam. "Nothing!" She yelled at the man at Sam's side. "He tells me nothing, because he's scared of you!"

All of the men except Sam burst into laughter. At Bella's expense. Bella didn't even stop to think, she just swung out and slapped the smirk off the face of the man that seemed to hate her so much.

She instantly regretted it. He had started to convulse with anger. Sam was trying to push him back towards the woods, away from Bella.

"Too late now!" Jared called out.

"Bella, get _back_." Sam's voice urged her to move, but she stood, unable to tear her eyes from the man as he shook with rage.

"Paul, calm down _now_."

 _So his name was Paul._ She didn't have much time to ponder that as she heard the cracking of bones and watched in shock as Paul changed from an angry man to an even angrier dark grey wolf. _Her_ dark grey wolf.

 _He didn't look friendly anymore, though._ The huge wolf snarled and growled and bared his teeth at her, stalking towards Bella like the she was the vampire prey he had hunted in the clearing only a few days before.

Bella turned and ran back towards the Black's house and saw Jake sprinting towards her. "Jake, run!" She shouted at him. He ignored her, continuing to hurtle right at her before he leapt off the ground and soared over her head. Bella stumbled and fell as she tried to watch Jake and run the other way at the same time. She landed in a heap on the ground. Admiring her best friend, Bella watched in awe as the giant russet wolf replaced Jacob's body in midair and he gracefully landed on all four paws, the ground shaking under his huge feet.

Jake and Paul snarled at one another before attacking, jaws snapping and fur flying as they tried to kill each other. Or so it appeared to Bella. She watched the carnage, helpless to stop it, as the two wolves fought their way into the woods.

Sam, Jared, and Embry just stood and surveyed the battling wolves, almost _casually_ , until the pair tumbled into the forest. She could hear Jared and Embry making bets on who would win the fight. _How could they be so calm about this?_ Sam turned to look at Bella, perhaps just to make sure she hadn't fainted of shock, and told Embry and Jared to get her back to Emily's. Whoever that was. Bella didn't even care anymore. She only cared that her best friend was ok. And Paul, too. It was kind of weird thinking of her grey wolf as a person. An _extremely_ attractive person. An extremely attractive human-wolf person that seemed to find her loathsome.

 _Why had she slapped him?_ She had never hit anyone before. She had caused this whole fight by going in half-cocked, screaming at Sam and the others. _If Paul or Jake got hurt, it would be her fault_.

She followed behind Jared and Embry in a daze as they led her to her truck. Bella tossed Embry the keys before climbing the passenger side. She heard the old truck creak and groan in protest as Jared hopped into the bed with ease. As Embry drove, Bella tried to sort through her tangled thoughts. Jake could turn into a giant russet wolf. And he knew about the vampires. Not just knew about the vampires, but apparently _hunted_ them for sport.

 _What about her wolf?_ Paul. He had spent hours in the woods with her. He carried her to the cliff and watched the sun rise with her. Yet, before she had even slapped him, Paul seemed to despise her. _Were the wolves separate from their human counterparts?_

They pulled into a gravel drive that led to a cozy looking cabin.

"Where are we?" Bella asked.

"Sam and Emily's place. Emily is Sam's fiancé."

"Oh."

"Don't stare. Sam doesn't like it." Embry warned before turning off the truck, leaving the keys in the ignition and slamming the door shut behind him.

Trying to figure out what to do with Embry's vague warning, she followed the pair into the cabin, looking around at the warm colors and soft looking furniture. It wasn't very large inside, but it felt homey. She was standing in the dining room, it appeared. She assumed the woman in the kitchen with her back towards Bella was Emily. She was taking something out of the oven. Embry and Jared each pulled out a chair at the table and plopped down.

Bella went to see if Emily needed help with what she was doing. Anything would be better than just standing around waiting for someone to tell her what was going on. Emily turned as Bella approached, revealing three long, angry-looking scars down the right side of her face. So _that's_ what she wasn't supposed to stare at. Emily was beautiful, with or without the scars. She had dark mahogany colored hair, and her dark eyes gleamed as she smiled at the newcomer in her kitchen. Bella didn't think that the scars took away from her beauty. She knew that any event to leave her scared like that would take a lot of mental strength to overcome. From the way Emily was smiling at her, she didn't seem like it had changed her for the worse. She wondered if it was Sam or Emily that was more sensitive about people staring at the marks on her face.

"You must be the vampire girl." Emily greeted her with a warm smile as she carried an enormous basket of muffins to the table.

"You must be the wolf girl." Bella quipped back. "I'm not really the vampire girl anymore, though. The Cullen's left. Now I'm just _Bella_."

"Well, _just Bella_ , it's nice to meet you." She gestured to the basket of muffins before swatting Jared's hand away. "Muffin?"

"Uh, yeah. Thank you. It's nice to meet you too." Bella grabbed a muffin from the basket before sitting down at the table. She wasn't that hungry, but she needed something to do with her hands. Plus, she hadn't eaten since last night. She should probably eat something before Emily showed her where Bigfoot lived in the backyard and Bella's blood sugar bottomed out. _Sasquatches still weren't real, right?_ She took a bite of muffin and couldn't stop herself from moaning in bliss. "This is _amazing_ ," she told Emily after she swallowed, "what did you put in this, heroin?"

Emily laughed at the girl, "come on, let's go in the kitchen. The rest of the guys will be here soon, and they'll be hungry. I don't want you getting trampled. Plus, you have to tell me what happened. It's so nice having another woman here. It's been a cesspool of testosterone for months." She rolled her eyes before retreating to the kitchen and calling back to Bella, "come on!"

Bella took another giant bite of muffin and followed Emily into the kitchen. It was hard to feel so anxious and worried around the bubbly girl.

"So? What happened?" Emily looked at her expectantly.

Swallowing, she answered, "I slapped Paul and he Phased. Then Jake Phased and they took off into the woods fighting."

"So why aren't you screaming and halfway out of the state by now?" Emily questioned.

"Vampire girl, remember? I'm good with weird."

Emily's smile widened. "I like you. You should stick around."

Bella's smile fell. "I don't think the others will want me around. It's my fault that Jake and Paul are fighting. I'm so ashamed of myself. I've never hit anyone before." Bella stared at her shoes, her face growing redder.

But Emily just laughed. "Please, those two would have fought anyway. You just gave them the reason for today's fight. They'll be fine. And Paul…well, I'm pretty sure everyone's wanted to slap Paul at one point or another. He's kind of a jerk."

"Really? But he seems…well, I only know him as a wolf. But his wolf seems so…gentle." Bella leaned in towards Emily as she spoke, glancing over at Jared and Embry. They were fighting over the last muffin and didn't appear to be listening to the girl's conversation.

"I'm pretty sure no one has ever used the word _gentle_ to describe Paul before. And what do you mean, you only know him as a wolf?" Emily asked, confused.

Before Bella could answer, Sam walked through the front door, beelining towards his fiancé. Sweeping her up in a tight hug, he planted a kiss on Emily that made Bella blush and look away. Quil, Jake, and Paul had followed Sam in the house. She looked at Jake, and then Paul. Neither of them looked like anything had happened. They were both wearing a fresh pair of shorts, and Jake was barefoot.

 _Ok, first things first._ Walking over to Paul, she softly asked, "Can we talk?"

Paul stared into her eyes, before slowly dragging his gaze down her body and back up to her face. The sneer on his face made her shiver. "Nope. You can go talk to your little _boyfriend_ , though."

"Please, Paul?" She implored him, hoping he would give her a chance to apologize.

Paul moved to walk past her, stopping when they were standing side to side, and leaned so close his lips almost grazed against her ear. Bella's mouth went dry and chills shot down her spine as his hot breath spilled onto her neck. His deep voice was dripping with venom when he whispered in her ear. "Not even if you paid me, princess."

Bella's face burned red and Jacob growled from across the room. She stared down at her shoes and tried to collect herself. She couldn't really blame him for being mad at her. She did _hit_ him. She deserved his anger.

Jacob stepped across the room to gently grab her elbow and lead her from the room. "Let's take a walk, honey."

* * *

Ten minutes later, Bella found herself on a beach with beautiful white sand and clear blue water. Any other day she would have been distracted by the beauty of the place, but today she had too much on her mind.

Bella figured she might as well break the silence. Didn't seem like Jake was real eager to. "So…wolves, huh?"

"I wanted to tell you, Bella. I couldn't."

"I understand, Jake. It wasn't your secret to tell."

"No, Bella, you don't understand. I _literally_ couldn't tell you. Sam alpha ordered me not to. You can't break one of those, no matter what you want."

"That doesn't seem very fair. Sounds like you don't have free will." Bella looked at her friend, brow furrowed in concern. "Are you ok, Jake? I've been so worried about you."

Jake's smile was slight as he answered, "There's a lot about this that's not fair. It isn't really Sam's fault, though. Tribal law says that no one outside the tribe is supposed to know about us. Most of the tribe doesn't even know. Just the elders, and some of our parents."

"Can I see you?" Bella shyly asked her friend.

Jake arched a brow at her. "See me? My wolf, you mean?"

Bella nodded.

"You aren't scared?"

"Of what? You'd never hurt me."

Jake shook his head sadly and looked out at the water, "Emily's scars? Sam got mad and Phased too close. And she's his _imprint_. I _could_ hurt you, Bells. That's why I've been staying away. I'm not very good at controlling my anger."

 _Imprint?_ "What's an imprint?"

"Uh…that's kind of hard to explain, honey." Jake rubbed the back of his neck as he tried to answer her questions. "It's like a soulmate. You just look at them and you know."

"Like love at first sight?" Bella asked.

"Kinda. It's like…you see the person, and your whole world _shifts_. Your imprint is the only one that matters. You live to make them happy. The elders say it's about who will bear us the best pups – uh, kids. But Sam says it's about more. He thinks the gods know who's right for us and the imprint is their way of showing us who that person is." Jake shook his head in frustration, "The whole thing is bullshit. No god is going to tell me who to love."

"So…you didn't imprint, then?"

"No, and I never will," Jake said with finality.

"How can you know that? Doesn't sound like you get to choose."

"If I were going to, it would have happened by now," Jacob said firmly, "Just, don't worry about it, ok, Bells? It's not gonna happen."

"Ok, Jake, but –"

Jacob cut her off. "Stand back. I'm gonna Phase." He flipped open the button on his shorts and started to push them down. They were down far enough for Bella to realize that he wasn't wearing anything underneath before she squealed and covered her eyes with her hand.

"Not funny, Jake!" She squeaked out as she backed up in the sand, eyes still covered. Bella heard her friend's hearty chuckle at her shyness before it fell silent. She cracked her fingers and peeked through to see the russet colored wolf sitting in the sand about twenty feet in front of her.

He was so beautiful! She ran up to where he sat. Even sitting, she had to tip her head up to stare at him. He pulled himself to his full height before starting to sniff her, circling around behind her. Apparently finished with his inspection, he stood in front of her again and licked across her entire face from chin to forehead with one swipe of his giant tongue.

"Gross, Jake! Knock it off!" She tried to wipe off her face with her shirt sleeve before asking the wolf, "Why do you all like doing that?"

He tipped his head at her like he was considering her question, before leaping forward to nudge her with his head playfully and sprinting off across the sand.

Bella landed on her butt. " _Real_ funny, Jake! I'm gonna get you for that!" she yelled after him, standing and dusting off the sand before taking off at a run after the wolf.

Twenty minutes later, Bella was soaking wet from jumping in the waves where they washed up on the beach and covered in sand from being knocked over by Jake's giant russet wolf. She plopped down in the sand to catch her breath. Jake laid down next to her, tongue lolling out to one side as he panted slightly.

"That was fun, Jake. I missed you." She reached over to scratch between Jake's ears as she asked, "Promise not to ignore me anymore?"

Jake yipped in response.

"I'll take that as a yes. Come on, we should probably get back to Emily's."

The wolf trotted over to where he had left his shorts, picking them up in his mouth and heading into the woods to Phase back.

As Bella waited for her friend to return, she tried to get the sand off her blue jeans and t-shirt. She got the bulk of it off before she shrugged and called it good. Only a shower and some clean clothes were gonna be able to fix the rest.

Jake walked back out a minute later, looking happier than he had in weeks. He wrapped Bella in a tight hug when he reached her, resting his chin on his head as he told her, "I'm so glad you know, Bells. I missed you _so much_."

"Missed you too, Jake." Pulling away, she turned and grabbed his wrist. "Let's go."

Jacob tried not to frown when Bella dropped his hand a moment later. "Wait, what did you mean before when I licked you?"

"Uh, I don't know. It was just a guess. Come on, I'll race you!" Bella took off at a run, hoping he would drop it. She wasn't ready to share the time she had spent with her wolf yet.

* * *

Night was falling as she climbed into her truck with a smile stretched across her face.

When she and Jake had returned from the beach, the entire Pack – except Paul, who had switched shifts with Jared and left to patrol – sat her down at the table and explained what they were as best they could to Bella. She now knew that the wolves were shape-shifters, not werewolves. They didn't need a full moon to shift, and they didn't eat people. Their job was to stop vampires from hurting people.

The whole Pack mind-meld thought-sharing thing sounded terrible to Bella. Not having _any_ private thoughts you could keep for yourself? _No, thanks._

When they were done talking and Emily started to bring food to the table, Bella had moved to leave. Emily told her, in no uncertain terms, that she wasn't going anywhere until she ate dinner with them. Bella had looked around the table at the Pack, expecting to find everyone besides Jacob protesting, or at least shooting her dirty looks. Instead, everyone seemed to welcome her. Quil teased her mercilessly, and Embry defended Bella several times by quipping back at the newest shifter to join the Pack. Sam sat at the head of the table, silently observing his Pack. But most often, his attention was on Emily. He seemed to be hyper-aware of her and her needs. Jared had told Bella all about his imprint, Kim. He was obviously over the moon for her. Before quickly pushing the thought far from her mind, Bella wondered how it would feel to have someone love her so completely, like Jared did for Kim.

Bella's thoughts drifted to Paul as she silently worked through the plate in front of her that Emily had piled high with food. She was upset with herself for what she had done to Paul. It didn't matter that he was too strong for her to physically injure. She had always believed that you didn't hit someone unless you _had_ to. She hadn't been in any danger, at least not before Paul Phased. _Maybe Sam would have some idea of how she could apologize to the volatile Quileute man._

They all stuffed themselves full of Emily's delicious food and laughed and joked with each other for the rest of the night. It felt like a family dinner, and Bella felt honored that they had let her stay. Saying goodbye to the Pack - and Emily; Bella walked to her truck with several plastic containers filled with leftovers. Checking the cell phone she had forgotten on the seat of her truck earlier, she saw she had a missed call and a voicemail from Charlie.

Listening to the message, she smiled as she heard her dad's gruff voice telling her that he had had a few beers too many and was going to spend the night at the Clearwater's. As she went to end the call to voicemail, her phone beeped at her as it died. Dammit. She didn't have a charger in the truck, either. Oh well, she was heading home now, anyhow.

The truck rumbled to life as she fired it up and she backed down the driveway slowly before she pulled out onto the road. She found a classic rock station playing a song she liked and made the drive back to Forks.

She had been driving for at least fifteen minutes when her truck began to sputter and jerk. Pulling over to the side of the road as it jerked once more before it died, she begged her truck, "No! Come on, girl. Don't do this to me."

But it was no use. The engine wouldn't crank back to life. She hopped down from the truck and kicked a tire as she growled in frustration. Bella opened the hood of her old beast and stared inside. "What am I _doing_? I have no idea what I'm looking at."

Slamming the hood closed, she went to grab her phone and call Jake. She figured he could help her get the truck working, or at least give her a ride home. She fished it out of the center console before remembering the battery was dead.

Great. Her phone was dead, her truck wouldn't run, and she was still miles from home. She had to be at least 10 miles from Emily's house, she figured. Looking up and down the dark, tree-lined road, the only thing of interest she could make out was a wooden mailbox at the end of a what appeared to be a narrow dirt driveway.

Bella considered her options. She could wait in her truck for someone she knew to drive by; which could take hours, considering this wasn't even the road that Charlie would take back to Forks once the beers were out of his system in the morning. She could walk back to Emily's house, in the dark, late at night, with who knows what running around in the forest that flanked either side of the road. She shivered as she thought about Laurent and her near death at his hands. The only option remaining was to find out what was at the end of that driveway, ask to use their phone, and hope they didn't murder her.

Because she always had _such_ great luck in that department.

Deciding that the driveway was still probably her best bet, she sighed and started to walk towards the driveway. She wasn't more than ten feet from her truck when the sound of branches snapping from the dark woods to her left brought her to an abrupt stop. Bella held her breath as she strained to listen, when a shadowed figure emerged from the woods, walking straight at her.

Bella sucked in a large gasp and turned to run back to her truck when a deep male voice rung out.

"Didn't anyone tell you the big bad wolf lives in these woods?"

* * *

 **Hi, guys!**

 **This is un-beta'd, so all mistakes are my own. Please let me know if you see any errors - grammatical or plot line.**

 **Bella may be OOC, because her character bugs me when she lets everyone walk all over her. I really enjoy strong female characters, so I suppose Bella will probably reflect that, although maybe not right at first. I have also tweaked the ages, because writing a high school Bella doesn't much appeal to me.**

 **Thank you for the follows and favorites, and bear with me as I try and get reacquainted with writing.**


	4. Chapter 4

" _Didn't anyone tell you the big bad wolf lives in these woods?"_

Bella found herself rooted to the spot; helpless to flee from whoever had come out of the woods to kill her.

He sauntered closer to her until recognition flashed in her eyes at the man before her. Paul. Predictably, he looked pissed.

"Uh...hey. Hi, Paul." Bella knew she sounded like an idiot as she mumbled at him. "My truck broke down."

He scoffed at her, like it was _her_ fault her truck wasn't working. "Of course it did. Tell me, do you _try_ to find trouble, or is it just something that comes naturally to you?"

"What? I definitely don't _try_ to get myself into trouble," Bella said as she glared at him. "What is that even supposed to mean? And what are you doing here, anyway?"

"I live right over there." He told her, pointing at the mailbox she had been heading towards before he so rudely interrupted her.

 _Of course it was his house_ , Bella thought. That was just how her luck seemed to go lately. "I was just about to walk to your house and ask to use your phone before you showed up," she informed him. "Only thing that was slowing me down was weighing the odds of whoever lived there murdering me." She knew she sounded snarky, but she just didn't care.

Paul eyed her like he was considering it. "Already ate dinner. You can use my phone. I'm sure your boyfriend will be tripping over himself to come get you. _Especially_ when he hears where you are."

"He's notmyboyfriend," Bella said quietly. "And what's that supposed to mean, when he hears where I am?"

"Your boyfriend doesn't want you around me."

"He's _not_ _my boyfriend_."

"Hmm, have you told him that? Because that's _definitely_ not what he's been telling the rest of us." Paul's voice was dripping with sarcasm.

"Yes, I've told him - why am I even discussing this with you?" This conversation was going nowhere, fast. "Can I use your phone, or not?" Bella asked the infuriating man.

"Already said you could," he said, winking at her before he turned and walked away.

Paul was halfway to the mailbox before she was able to release the breath she hadn't realized she was holding. "You coming?" He called over his shoulder at her, smirking at the forlorn expression on Bella's face.

She shook her head to clear it as she took off after him, stumbling a little as she began moving again. _What the hell was that?_ Could he _be_ any more confusing? One minute he was cold and the next he was hot. _Very, very hot._ Bella internally rolled her eyes. _No_. He's made it _extremely_ clear just how he felt about her. Besides, it's not like she wanted to do anything with him anyway. _Right_? Right. She jogged a little to catch up with him, his long strides moving him far faster than Bella's legs could take her.

"Nice of you to join me," he told her as she reached him, that stupid smirk still stuck on his face.

Bella didn't respond, not trusting her voice to stay steady.

They walked up the dirt drive in silence, which should have been uncomfortable but for some reason felt completely normal. Maybe it was because Bella didn't feel like she had to fill the silence with awkward small talk. Or it could be that he wasn't asking her stupid personal questions that she didn't really want to answer but felt she had to out of politeness. They just walked side by side down the long dirt drive, the only light coming from the now full moon. Even more surprising, Bella wasn't the least bit scared. She didn't think there was a single thing that could come out of the woods that Paul or his wolf couldn't easily take care of.

So, she just took in the beauty of the nature surrounding her. Drawing in a deep breath of clean pine air, she tipped her head back to admire how far up the tops of the trees went. They had to be hundreds of years old to grow that tall and wide. She couldn't help but to picture what this area might have looked like when these giant trees had first started to grow.

"It's beautiful out here," Bella told him, turning her head to look at the tall man walking beside her. "You live out her alone?" she asked quietly.

"Yep."

"Doesn't it get lonely out here by yourself?" Bella asked as they came to a stop at a set of stairs leading to what appeared to be the wrap-around porch attached to a dark house.

Paul just stared at her, his expression blank as his eyes bore into hers. He scrutinized her for a few more seconds before he looked away, shaking his head as he jogged up the stairs to the porch. It looked like now she was the one asking the personal questions that he didn't feel like answering.

The screen door slammed behind him as Paul disappeared into the house, leaving Bella to wonder if she was supposed to follow him in or wait outside.

She had walked up the porch stairs and was trying to work up the courage to go into the house when Paul reappeared holding a cordless phone. Stepping back outside, he thrust the phone out to her; waiting for her to take it before going back down the stairs. Bella watched him sit down on a chair in the clearing beside the cabin next to what looked like a fire pit before returning her attention to the phone in her hand. She dialed the numbers she knew by heart and hoped her friend would answer.

Nothing. The phone to the Black house rang and rang and rang, before Bella gave up and hung up the phone. Okay, his cell phone. Dialing again, she put the phone back to her ear and listened as it went straight to voicemail. _Now what?_ Hanging up the phone, she set it down on the railing and tried to figure out what to do. She was going to have to ask Paul to give her a ride home. It had to be close to midnight now. Bella couldn't think of any other option besides just walking home, which would take her forever this far from town.

Begrudgingly heading over to where Paul sat, she tried to figure out how to ask the volatile man. As she reached him, she saw that he was smoking a cigarette, the lit end glowing in the dark as he took a long drag.

"I didn't know you smoked," Bella said to the dark figure as she sat in the chair next to him.

"I usually don't. Didn't want my damn house smelling like _leech_." He told her, the words filled with distaste.

Bella couldn't stop herself from wincing at his words. She glared at him as she scrambled to think of some quick response. She studied his profile with narrowed eyes. _No, something else was bugging him._ "That doesn't even make sense. I wasn't even _in_ your house. Even if I had been, what good is smoking way over here gonna do?" She asked, trying to keep her voice strong. "Besides, the Cullen's left months ago. There's no way you still smell them on me."

Bella took some satisfaction in the look on Paul's face. He clearly hadn't expected her to answer. It seemed like he was the type to try keep people at arms-length with his shitty attitude.

"Your boyfriend on his way?" He asked.

"Nope. He didn't answer," Bella quipped back at the man, matching his tone. "I thought your hearing was supposed to be good or something."

Paul snorted. "Wasn't listening. Didn't want to hear his whiny little voice." He raised his voice several octaves higher in what Bella assumed was supposed to be an imitation of Jake. "Oh, Bells, honey, I'll be right there to rescue you. If I'm a really, really, good boy, will you let me hold your hand later?"

Bella covered her mouth as she tried to hide the snort of unintentional laughter that escaped. "Stop. He doesn't sound like that," she chided Paul. "Jake is a really good friend."

"Yeah? And why do you think he's such a _really good friend_ to you, Bella?" Came Paul's sarcastic response. "Do you think it's because Jake's such a _super_ _great_ guy? Or because he wants to fuck you?" He paused to fix her with his emotionless stare as he finished. "Because I promise, he hasn't been thinking about all the _friendly_ things he wants to do to you. It's not going to be very long before his _friendliness_ wears off and he starts pushing you harder to spread your legs for him."

"Stop," Bella snapped at Paul, having heard enough. "He's not like that."

"Just calling it like I see it," came Paul's quick response.

She stood and glared at him. "I'm leaving. Thanks for letting me use your phone." Bella marched off, fuming, before he could make another stupid comment. She would rather walk home than spend another second listening to his nasty remarks.

As she stomped down the driveway, Bella couldn't help but to realize that some truth rang in Paul's words. Yes, his delivery had been unnecessarily crude. But Jake _had_ been pushing her more often now for a romantic relationship. He had been understanding so far when she turned him down, but how long would that last? How would Jake react if he found out that she would never feel that way about him?

Bella sighed, her stomping fading into a more normal pace as she continued back down the driveway towards her truck. It was her own fault for not making it clear how she felt. Her head was so twisted after Edward had left that she had actually strung Jacob along with just enough hope to ensure that he would stick around. Bella knew she was going to have to talk to Jake, and soon. She could only hope he would understand.

She only felt friendship for him, and that wasn't going to change. Ever.

Suddenly, Bella heard the sounds of a motorcycle roaring to life from somewhere behind her. A single headlight shone down the driveway as the rumbling of the bike grew louder. She quickly moved to the side of the drive, knowing that Paul probably wouldn't hesitate to run her over if she didn't get out of the way fast enough for his liking. Bella was standing on the edge of the road as Paul pulled up beside her, his feet dropping to the ground to hold the beast he straddled between his legs in place. He had changed into a pair of well-worn jeans, black motorcycle boots, and a leather jacket.

Bella had to remind herself to close her mouth before she started drooling. The last thing Paul needed was anything to feed his massive ego. He pulled off his jacket to reveal a long-sleeved grey V-neck shirt that hugged his broad shoulders and clung to the muscles that wrapped across his chest and abdomen. _Oh, god._ Paul tossed the jacket at Bella, and she surprised herself when she actually caught it.

"Put that on." He told her.

Bella just stood there; holding the jacket that she had somehow managed to catch as she stared at the gorgeous man in front of her like an idiot.

Paul's deep voice pulled her out of her daze. "You want a ride, or not?"

"Uh, yeah. Thanks." She said as she pulled the leather jacket on. She pulled one lapel forward and took a deep inhale. Yep. It smelled like leather and _Paul_ : pine trees, ocean air, and something purely male.

"Did you just sniff my jacket?" He asked Bella.

 _Shit_. "What? No." She tried to sound convincing as her face burned red with embarrassment.

"Uh huh. Climb on." Paul gestured to the back of his bike with a nod of his head.

Bella felt close to hyperventilating as she climbed on the bike behind Paul. She really hoped he couldn't hear her heart pounding. The insides of her thighs pressed against his muscular legs as she scooted down in her seat and tried to get used to the vibrations of the bike between her legs.

Paul waited until she was situated, before looking over his shoulder at the nervous woman behind him. "You're gonna want to hold on," he warned, before releasing the brake, accelerating, and shifting gears. Bella squealed as they sped forward, tires spinning and kicking up dirt before finding purchase on the ground. She wrapped her arms tight around Paul's midsection, pressing her cheek against the soft material of his shirt as she squeezed her eyes shut in fear.

Reaching the end of the driveway, Paul had to slow down before he could turn onto the two-lane highway. He must have been able to feel her heartbeat pounding erratically, because he dropped a foot to the ground to hold the bike up as they slowed to a stop. She felt the low bass of his voice rumbling through his chest where her face was pressed against his back as he tried to reassure her. "Relax. I won't let anything happen to you." Bella nodded and took a deep breath before slightly loosening the death grip she had on him.

And then they were off, turning onto the narrow highway, past her truck and down the road towards Forks. Paul accelerated and shifted gears. The wind whipped her hair around her head as she held on tight and tried to enjoy the ride. She peeked her eyes open as they flew down the road in the dark, the wind and the cold stinging her eyes and making them water.

It was exhilarating. The feel of the road under the tires, flying down the road in near darkness, the smell and the _feel_ of Paul as her body clung to his. This man was _dangerous_.

And she wanted more.

That thought had scarcely entered her mind before they reached Forks and Paul slowed to an acceptable speed for driving through town. Bella pulled her face back and opened her eyes, hands skimming down Paul's sides as she adjusted her grip and straightened her spine so she could look around. They drove past the sign welcoming them to Forks, and as they drew closer to the small town movie theater, Bella saw a large group of people standing out front. The late-night showing must have just let out. Maybe she'd get lucky and it wouldn't be anyone she knew.

They pulled up to the stop sign and Bella grimaced. She saw Mike, Jessica, and several others from her class watching her. There was no way they wouldn't notice her hanging onto the gorgeously muscular native man as they drove his motorcycle past. She heard Paul's dry laugh when he saw the crowd of people watching them. Bella groaned thinking about how much school was going to suck on Monday. _At least I've only got a few months left until graduation._

Pulling out from the stop sign; Paul gunned the throttle and the pair shot away from the crowd outside the theater with squealing tires and a deep rumble of the bike's powerful engine. Bella couldn't help but laugh as she held on tight. _Might as well give them something to gossip about,_ she thought _._

When they pulled into her driveway, Paul slowed the bike to a stop and dropped a foot to the ground to hold it up as Bella climbed down. She wasn't as anxious to get away from him as she thought she would be. Shrugging off the soft leather from her shoulders, she folded it over her arm and moved to hand it back to him.

He grabbed it out of her hands and scowled. _Sheesh_. What did she do wrong now?

"Thanks for the ride and…everything," she finished the sentence with a mumble and a wave of her hand. "I'll come by to figure out what to do about my truck tomorrow."

"Don't bother," he snapped. "I'll have your boyfriend take care of it."

 _What the hell?_ Five minutes ago they were laughing and now he was back to his boyfriend comments.

"What is your _problem_?" Bella asked.

"I don't have a fucking problem. You gonna go inside so I can get the hell outta here, or what?"

She wasn't going to give him the curtesy of a response. Bella turned on her heel and headed for the front door, thankful for the bright lights from the porch that lit up the front yard. The last thing she wanted was to trip in front of Paul. As she reached the door, she fished in her pocket for her keys.

The keys she had left in her truck. _Of course_.

Rubbing a hand across her forehead, she considered her options. The only spare she knew of was hidden under a flowerpot on top of the utility shelf in the garage. The garage that Charlie had changed the access code for last week. _Splendid_. The only other way in was through one of small windows that were high on the sides of the garage. There was a window right next to the utility shelf; she could probably even reach the key from it.

The problem was, she was going to need a hand up to reach it the window. At this point, the idea of sleeping on the front porch sounded preferable to asking Paul for anything. Just as she was contemplating how to convince him he could leave, a voice from right behind her made her clutch her chest and scream as she swung her arm out.

"Waiting for someone to invite you in?" Paul's deep bass came from somewhere near her right ear before he leaned back to avoid her swinging arm.

"Nope," Bella calmly answered, popping the 'p,' "Just enjoying the weather."

Paul rolled his eyes at her. "Seriously. I got better places to be. Go inside," he ordered.

"Why are you so bossy? You can leave whenever you want," she glowered at him. Bella figured she would break a damn window to get inside or something. Charlie would understand. Probably.

Paul narrowed his eyes at her before striding forward, cornering her as she quickly backed up away from him. "Tell me why you're not going in," he demanded, his voice low and rough.

She internally rolled her eyes at his attempted intimidation. He just didn't scare her like he seemed to think he could. However, it was _definitely_ after midnight now and Bella had no desire to stand out on her porch all night with this _infuriating_ man. "I left my house key in the truck," she answered, "I need a hand up through the garage window to get the spare."

"You have got to be fucking kidding me." Paul's voice was once again filled with venom.

Bella had had enough. She stepped forward out of the corner she had been backed into, trying to ignore the fact that the top of her head could easily fit under his chin. _Damn, he was tall_. No. _Focus_.

"You know what? No, I'm not _fucking_ _kidding_ you. The last time I tried to climb through that window without help I fell and broke my leg. And that was in the middle of the day. You know, the sun was out? I could see where I was going?" She was committed to this rant now, her pent-up annoyance from dealing with his shitty attitude that last _too_ _many_ minutes all spilling out. "Yeah, so chances that I'll fall and break another limb are pretty high. Then, you'd have to take me to the hospital and spend even more time with me. Or, knowing you, you'd just leave me there. So then Charlie would find me when he gets home in the morning. He'll want to know why this happened. Then, he'll go find you, and probably shoot you a couple of times. I'm guessing your stupid shapeshifter ass can't die from a bullet wound or some dumb crap like that, so then you'll have to explain why your fucking skin is Kevlar, and – "

Paul snorted out a laugh as he held up a hand to silence her, the first real smile she had ever seen appearing on his face. He looked like a completely different person when he smiled. Bella couldn't help but laugh at herself, her frustration forgotten.

"About time you got mad. Looks like you've got a backbone after all," He said.

"And it looks like you _can_ smile after all." Bella retorted lightheartedly. "Besides," she clarified, "Just because I don't run around pretending to be all _tough_ and _scary_ like _some_ people," she paused to glare at Paul pointedly, "that doesn't mean I don't have a backbone." She smiled at him brightly before turning and flouncing off to stand under the garage window in question, feeling somewhat proud of herself. As he reached her, she turned to add lightheartedly, "Hey, maybe you'll even get lucky and I'll fall and break my neck." It was supposed to be a joke but the look on his face was anything but amused.

Any residual humor left his face as he growled. "That's not fucking funny. Don't joke about that."

"Why not?" Bella asked quietly.

"I just don't find the thought of you dying very _amusing_. Got it?" He snapped.

 _Huh?_ "Why are you so mad now? It was just a joke"

Paul glowered at her before responding. "Let's just get this over with. Come here." He didn't wait for her to make it all the way over to him before he grabbed her by the hips and hoisted her up so her butt was balanced on his shoulder. "How much higher up do you need to be?"

Bella had left her mental filter back down by where her feet were dangling. "Holy crow! How strong _are_ you?"

"You have _no_ _idea_ , little girl."

 _No, but I want to find out._ Her mouth went dry as she pictured Paul on top of her, holding his weight off her much smaller frame with his muscular arms, powerful thighs spreading her knees apart. A sheen of sweat covered his smooth, defined chest as he bent to nip at her neck with those soft, full lips, kissing and licking down –

Bella's face burned red hot. _Focus_. She heard Paul laughing below her. "What's so funny?" She asked him stiffly. She hadn't said any of that out _loud_ , right? Her face burned impossibly hotter at the thought of Paul knowing what she had just thought of him.

"Oh, nothing." Paul was still chucking darkly underneath her.

 _He can't read minds_ , she firmly reminded herself before she put it out of her head. Bella decided she needed to focus all her attention at the task at hand so she could get the hell away from the sexy man holding her on his shoulder. She tried not to think about the fingers that were splayed across the exposed skin of her stomach from where her shirt had ridden up slightly as his large hand gripped her hip to support her.

Bella reached forward and unlatched the screen, tossing it to the grass below. Pushing the window open, she reached through to where Charlie had hidden the spare house key. Bella was going to have a serious talk with her dad about appropriate places to hide keys _really_ soon. She moved the small clay flower pot on the top of the utility shelving unit and snatched up the key.

"Could you quit squirming around?" Paul growled at her from below.

What was his _deal_? She knew he wasn't having a hard time holding her up – he was still only using the one hand. Bella decided to mess with him a little bit. He had earned it.

She grabbed onto the window frame and pulled herself a little further through the window.

"What the hell are you doing?" Paul snapped at her from below.

"Trying to reach the key…just a little farther," she called down as she pulled herself further out of his grasp before yelling, "Shit!" Bella had just planned to push back on the window frame a little to make it seem like she was losing her balance…but now she was _actually_ falling. She barreled into him as she fell and they tumbled into the ground, Paul breaking her fall.

Looking down at him, flat on his back underneath her, she smiled and tried to look innocent. "Oops?" She said timidly. One look at his face was all she needed to tell he knew it hadn't been an accident. She quickly climbed off him as he began to pull himself up, a smirk that didn't look entirely friendly spreading across his handsome face as she held her hands up to placate him while slowly backing away. Bella tried to explain, "Wait, it really _was_ an accident, I – " He was getting closer, now. _Screw this_. She turned and ran around towards the back of the house.

From behind her, she heard him call out, "Oh, you better run!"

A quick peek over her shoulder revealed that he was running after her. And quickly gaining. Darting to change directions, she made to loop back around to the front of the house. As she was coming around the side, she checked behind her again – hmm, _where did he go_? Before Bella could consider his disappearance, she plowed into something incredibly hard. Paul had apparently come around the front of the house and Bella had hurtled into him; taking them both to the ground in a tangled mess of limbs.

She tried to scramble off him, kicking him as she tried to dislodge her foot from where it was stuck. Freeing the trapped appendage, she promptly kneed him in the groin as she tried to escape and heard him loudly groan in pain.

"Dammit, would you just hold still!" Paul choked out with his eyes closed, holding her tightly against him to stop her from kneeing him again.

Bella was laying flush on top of him, her knees on the ground on either side of his stomach as she straddled him and grimaced down at the look of pain on his face. "I'm really sorry – I didn't mean to hurt you. I only meant to pretend to fall because you were being such a jerk about it…but I'm not that great with balance, and I actually fell…and then kicked you a bunch of times." He was still lying there with his eyes closed. He looked like he was in serious pain. "Um…is there anything I can…get you? To help with your – um…injury?" Okat, this was getting _really_ awkward. She should probably get up and give him some space. She tried again to stand, and found herself suddenly on her back.

Paul flipped them over, her back pressed into the damp grass as his face hovered inches above her own. His forearms caged her head, bracing his weight. Desire sparked low in her belly and goosebumps spread across her skin as his scent surrounded her. She relaxed her knees as his firm body pushed down against her, allowing him to fit himself snuggly between her legs. Bella felt her cheeks flush and she met his gaze, looking back and forth between his eyes with confusion in her own. A devious smirk crossed his face before he leaned towards the side of her neck, tracing his nose against her skin from her ear to the hollow of her throat. She couldn't stop herself from turning her head to expose more of her neck to him. Nor could she help the moan that escaped when she felt his tongue and lips and teeth nibbling across the delicate skin of her throat. Bella's hips lifted of their own volition; pressing and grinding herself into him. Paul bit her collarbone lightly as one of his giant hands moved under her thin top, his hand almost spanning across her entire stomach as he pushed her hips back to the ground.

"I thought I told you to _hold_ _still_." Paul's low voice rumbled as he spoke, and she moaned again at the feel of it reverberating through his chest against her own.

But before Bella could throw caution to the wind and lose her virginity on the damp grass of her front lawn, something began to vibrate against her inner thigh. Smirking at her again, Paul reached between them to retrieve the interruption, the backs of his knuckles dragging across her oversensitive denim-clad leg, chuckling darkly as he watched her shiver under his touch.

Pulling out his phone, he looked down at the screen. "Sam," he explained as he moved to his knees before answering the call.

She could hear Sam's terse voice on the other end, but couldn't make out what he was saying. She could tell he was upset. Paul was silent as he listened to the voice on the phone.

Finally, he spoke. "I'll be there," he said simply.

Sam's voice started up again, and Bella thought she heard her name.

"Don't bother. I'll bring her." Paul's response was clipped before he ended the call and looked at the confused girl still pinned beneath his hips. He moved to sit at her side, his long legs stretching out in front of him, bent slightly at the knee as he waited for Bella to sit up. "Harry Clearwater had a heart attack when Leah Phased for the first time in front of him," Paul explained before he hesitated slightly. "Your dad saw the whole thing."

Bella's eyes widened as she gasped. "Is he-?" She couldn't bring herself to say it.

"They got Harry to the hospital. Your dad wants you brought there. Seems he's a bit upset about the whole _wolf_ thing." Paul answered, on side of his mouth quirking up slightly. "Let's go." He told her as he stood and reached a hand down to help her up. Pulling her to her feet like she was weightless, they walked quickly back to where his bike was parked.

Paul straddled the motorcycle before once again tossing Bella his leather jacket. She wordlessly pulled it on and climbed back on the bike, thoughts swirling through her head. Charlie knew about the wolves. Did he know about the vampires, too? She couldn't bring herself to consider that Harry wouldn't make it.

Paul waited for her to wrap her hands around his waist and bury her face in his back before throttling the bike off the gravel, onto the pavement and down the road to the hospital.


	5. Chapter 5

Paul cut the bike's engine after pulling into a parking spot. Taking the hand he offered her, Bella clambered off the bike and rubbed her palms against her thighs nervously.

"Come on." His deep voice from behind her pulled her from of the daze she was in, and the pair turned and made their way to the hospital. Bella had to walk quickly to match his long strides. Just like he had done in the woods; Paul slowed his pace when he noticed the woman at his side struggling. She smiled worriedly up at Paul before biting her lip as they went through the automatic doors of the hospital entrance.

Paul didn't bother to stop at the front desk; instead striding down the hall towards a set of elevators. Bella fidgeted nervously as they entered an elevator and Paul punched the number seven button on the keypad. She didn't know how he knew where they were supposed to go, but she was glad she was here with him.

When the doors finally opened to the seventh floor, it was obvious where they needed to go next. The entire Pack sat together behind a glass wall in a small waiting area across from the elevator. Emily was there, as well as Harry's wife, Sue; and her kids, Leah and Seth. Bella spotted her dad sitting near them, His leg bouncing anxiously. Bella hurried over to the group, heading towards her dad. Everyone looked up as she walked in followed by Paul. Jake had a murderous look on his face.

She briefly wondered what his problem was before putting it out of her mind. What mattered to her now was finding out what was happening with Harry Clearwater and making sure her dad wasn't losing his mind.

"Bella," Charlie's voice was filled with relief as he saw his daughter. He stood and pulled her into a tight hug. Bella's arms hung limply at her sides in surprise before she hugged him back.

"How is he? Is he -?" Bella asked, unable to stop her voice from breaking.

"We don't know," Charlie answered quietly, his eyes darting to Sue. "They've been working on him for a while," He added.

Bella bit her lip to stop the tears from falling. She couldn't imagine how Sue or Seth were feeling right now, let alone _Leah_. It wasn't Leah's fault, but your dad having a heart attack right after you changed into a giant wolf in front of him…that was just cruel. Bella pulled back from Charlie, searching his face. "What about…" She trailed off, unsure of how to finish that question.

"We'll talk later," Charlie answered simply.

 _Oh, god. Let's make that much, much later._

"Uh, sure. I'm going to go talk to Emily." Bella said.

She walked to where Emily sat, returning the woman's small smile as she took the empty seat next to her.

"How are you?" Bella softly asked her new friend. She had never been particularly good with words, especially in these kinds of situations. She was going to do her best to struggle through and keep her awkward chatter to a minimum.

Emily met her eyes before staring at the hands that sat clasped together in her lap. "I don't know, Bella. It's been a really long night." She looked at where Sam sat, across from her. Sam didn't seem to notice his imprint's eyes on him, however. All of his attention appeared to be focused on Leah.

Bella crinkled her brow and looked back at Emily, trying to figure out what was going on. Before she could ask, Leah got up with a huff and walked out of the room, her feet stomping a bit as she stormed off. Sam stood and followed after her like a lost puppy.

"He's just worried about her," Emily told her firmly, but her eyes couldn't hide the hurt she felt at Sam's actions. Bella tried to smooth the confusion off of her face, but she apparently wasn't successful. "It's complicated, Bella," Emily added, her eyes dropping back to her hands, knuckles white as they clenched into fists in her lap.

It didn't seem like it was something Emily wanted to talk about, so Bella tried to be useful in other ways. "I'm going to get some coffee. Want something to drink?" She asked.

"That'd be great, Bella. Thanks."

A few minutes later she headed to the cafeteria to get coffee for Sue, Emily, Charlie, and herself. As she returned, her focus was entirely on not dropping the cardboard tray containing the hot coffees. She almost missed Paul standing alone in front of a wall of glass windows facing the parking lot. He didn't acknowledge her presence when she passed, but she knew he was aware of her by the way he stiffened as she walked by. Bella still wanted to apologize to him, as well as thank him for getting her home and then to the hospital. Now didn't seem like the right time for that, however. Resolving to smooth over their issues and properly thank him just as soon as things calmed down, she continued back to the waiting room to hand out the coffees.

Having delivered the hot beverages, Bella plopped down in an empty chair in the waiting room and sipped at her coffee. She had woken up this morning intending to fix things with Jake, and instead stumbled into secret werewolf legends. She might have been able to write the whole damn day off as one of her wilder nightmares if not for the time spent on her back in Charlie's front yard. She flushed red with embarrassment as she thought about her eager reaction to Paul's muscular frame pressed into hers. No man had ever touched her like that. _And he's probably done that a hundred times with a hundred different women_ , she reminded herself. The thought of Paul touching some other woman in the intimate way he had touched her made red wash across her vision and she groaned softly and she banged her head back softly against the wall. She shouldn't be thinking about him like this. This whole thing was probably a game to him.

Taking the last sip of her coffee, she tossed the empty cup in the trash and was almost to the woman's bathroom to try and fix her tangled mess of windblown hair when a noise made her pause.

"Leave me _alone_." Leah's voice filtered out into the hallway.

"But I need to explain – " Bella heard a male voice speak. _Was that Sam?_

"Not now. Not ever! You're only trying to make yourself feel better – you don't care that you're making me feel worse. No – _don't_ touch me."

"Lee-lee, you don't understand."

"I understand. I understand more than I ever wanted to. Now leave me the hell alone."

Bella didn't want to get in the middle of a personal conversation that had nothing to do with her, but it sure didn't sound like Leah wanted Sam there. And he didn't seem to be listening. She knew Leah didn't much care for Bella, but right now, with everything going on with Harry – that didn't matter. She was going in.

Bella pulled the door open nosily and walked in, heading right over to the sink like she was looking in the mirror.

"Bella, could you give us some privacy?" Sam asked.

"I have to pee, Sam," Bella told him straightforwardly, not sparing him a look as she tried to finger-comb the snarls out of her hair. "Besides, I definitely heard Leah tell you to leave her alone. So how bout you head back to Emily in the waiting room instead of harassing women with sick fathers in the bathroom, k?" Bella's smile was hollow as she turned and met Sam's exasperated glare. She stared him down until he finally sighed and turned to leave.

"We'll talk later, Lee." Sam called over his shoulder as he left.

Bella waited until the door had closed behind him before she turned back to the mirror and sighed at her snarly hair. She ignored Leah, not wanting to be rude, but knowing what it felt like to just want to be left alone. Wrestling her unruly hair into a ponytail, she shrugged at her reflection. _Eh, could be worse._ She had turned to leave when Leah's quiet voice stopped her.

"Wait - Bella."

"Yeah, Leah?" She asked as she turned to face the woman that had never quite accepted her arrival in town. Leah was leaning against the wall by the hand driers, looking defeated.

"Thanks. He's…I'm not…we're not…" Pushing off the wall, she gestured loosely; looking at a loss for words.

"It's none of my business, Leah."

"It kind of is, now. Plus…I just need to tell someone. I heard about what happened between you and…" Leah trailed off.

Bella's face flushed, embarrassed that everyone seemed to know about her breakdown. Everyone must think of her as such a stupid teenage girl.

Seeing the look on her face, Leah elaborated. "No, it's not like that. I just know what it feels like. We used to date, me and Sam. It was more than that. We were in love." Leah sighed, sitting on one of the plush chairs in the corner of the room.

"We had all these plans. We were gonna travel all over, get out of La Push. Go to college together. We had plans to get married." Leah stared down at her shoes and took a deep breath before she continued. "And then one day, he stopped calling. Just like that. I went to his house and his mom gave me excuse after excuse. Someone told me they saw him with Emily. I didn't believe them. Emily was my cousin, my best friend, and Sam would never do that to me. I knew there had to be some explanation. But Emily wouldn't talk to me either, and I heard my mom fighting with Emily's mom on the phone. They never fought.

Finally, two weeks later, he called me. The phone call lasted three minutes. It barely even sounded like him on the phone. He broke up with me, and I remember just sitting there, staring at the phone, watching all those plans we had evaporate like smoke. I screamed at him, begging him to explain, and all he would say is how sorry he was.

"A week after that, I found out he had moved in with Emily. Emily and I had grown up together. She's only 3 months older than me. We had been inseparable even as babies. After that, I pushed everyone away. If the two people closest to me could hurt me like that, no one was safe. I've spent a year and a half being furious, all the time. I've damaged the relationship I had with my mother, I stopped talking to my brother, and my dad…I was _terrible_ to my dad." Tears were rolling unchecked down Leah's face now.

"Tonight when he had the heart attack? I had just got done saying something bitchy to my mom. He stood up and told me that he had had enough of my new attitude. He never raised his voice at me. I realized that I had lost the last person remaining on my side and I got so mad at him. I was _furious_ , Bella. And before I knew what had happened, something…shifted. I watched my dad collapse and when I went to run to him, I wasn't _me_ anymore. Your dad was just staring at me, he didn't even notice my dad fall. My mom was screaming…and I couldn't figure out how to Phase back.

"Someone told Sam what was going on, I guess, because all of the sudden I could hear him in my head. I could see Emily through his eyes. All the love he has for her, the love he still has for me…I thought I had died and this was my personal hell.

"Once I realized that I was very much alive, I find out all the tribe legends are real? The bedtime stories my mom used to tell me to put me to sleep were all _true_? Sam had broken my heart over some _stupid_ imprinting curse? I ruined everything good I had in my life and now maybe even killed my own father-" Leah collapsed into sobs, unable to talk anymore.

Bella sat in the chair next to the crying woman and rubbed her back. She knew there was nothing she could say right now to soothe what was hurting Leah. She just wanted Leah to know she was there for her.

When Leah's crying slowed, Bella grabbed the box of Kleenex on the small table next to the chair and passed them to her. "Harry is going to make it through this, Leah. He's tough, and I know he's going to fight. But even if…even if he didn't, if he _can't_ …He knows you love him. He knows you were hurting, and angry at the world. He knows you didn't mean it." Bella drew her legs up to her chest and wrapped her arms around herself before she continued. "I was terrible to Charlie. After… _it_ happened…even before. I was so wrapped up in my own problems that I didn't talk to him for months. I lied to him, I told him I couldn't stand another minute with him…He was still there after all the horrible things I said and did to him. He loves me. And so does your dad." She stood and offered Leah a hand up. "We should get back, find out if there's any updates on Harry."

They pair stood and stared at each other for a moment before they both laughed lightly. They were both sniffling, and their eyes were red rimmed and bloodshot.

"Look, Bella. I never hated you. Watching Jake fawn over you hit too close to home. He reminded me of myself. I thought he was making a fool of himself. You were so in love with Edward and Jake couldn't see that you didn't love him the way he wanted you to." Leah's voice implored her forgiveness.

Bella sighed. She was ashamed of how she had acted towards everyone in her life after Edward left her. _Maybe her and Leah weren't so different, after all._ "I have to talk to Jake, and soon." She told Leah.

They exited the bathroom together and turned back towards the waiting room. Jacob was stomping towards Bella determinedly, looking frustrated.

"Looks like you're going to get your chance," Leah told her new friend. "I'm gonna go see if my mom heard anything."

Bella nodded distractedly, mentally preparing herself to talk to Jake. She knew this wasn't going to be easy.

"I've been looking everywhere for you," Jake said as he reached her.

"Sam could have told you I was in the bathroom with Leah," Bella said lightly, trying to make him smile.

But Jacob didn't smile. "Why did _Paul_ bring you to the hospital?" He said Paul's name like it disgusted him.

"He was at my house when Sam called about Harry."

"Why was he at _your house?!"_ Jake looked like steam was about to shoot out of his ears.

"My truck died near his house and he gave me a ride home," Bella explained, trying to keep her voice calm and steady as he pelted her with questions.

"I would have given you a ride, Bells."

"Well, you didn't answer the phone when I called you, Jake." She told him impatiently, rolling her eyes. _What was his deal?_

"Dammit!" Jake pulled his cell phone out of his loose blue gym shorts and pushed a button. "It's dead." He told her as he showed her he black screen.

"Yeah, Jake, I figured." Bella couldn't help but crack a grin at her friends frustration. "It's fine. I made it home ok and Paul was nice enough to give me a ride here as well."

" _Nice_ ," Jake scoffed. "Paul is not _nice_ , honey. You need to stay far away from him."

"Ok, _dad_ ," Bella replied sarcastically. "You want to tell me what's got your panties in a twist?"

"I'm serious, Bells. He's not a good guy. He _will_ hurt you."

Bella couldn't stop herself from rolling her eyes again. His overprotective antics were getting old, fast. "Calm down, Jake. He just gave me a ride home."

"And that's it? You don't…you aren't _interested_ in him, right?"

Bella's face flushed as she answered. "That's none of your business, Jake," she said, proud of herself for meeting her friends eyes.

"Damn right, it's my business! You're my-well, I want you to be…," Jake ran a hand through his short hair. "You know how I feel about you, honey." His voice implored her to understand and Bella broke a little inside at what she knew she had to do.

"I do," she sighed. "But, Jake…I love you so much, you're my best friend, but I don't…it's not like that for me."

Jake looked crushed. "If you could just _try_...," he said quietly.

"I _have_ tried, Jake. You're a great guy, you'd be a perfect boyfriend. But-"

"But not for you."

Bella just shook her head, looking at the tiled floor as she tried not to cry.

"Bella?" Charlie's voice called down the hall from behind Jake. "The doctor is going to give us an update."

"Coming, dad," she told him before looking back at her friend. She grabbed his hand. "Come on, lets go find out what's going on."

But Jake pulled his hand away. "I can't go in there right now. I've got to get out of here," he told her before walking around Bella, his long strides taking him quickly to the stairs at the end of the hall.

Bella watched him leave, wondering how she was going to fix this mess she got them in.

"The doctor called Sue and the kids back to give them an update," Charlie's voice broke through her reverie, and Bella shook her head to clear it before focusing on the task at hand.

They had just made it back to the waiting room when Seth returned, the expectant eyes of the group snapping to him as he spoke. "He's stable. They think he's going to make it."

Relief flooded through Bella as she hugged her dad tightly again. Charlie released her, pulling her to arms length . The look he shot her said they still had plenty to discuss as soon as they were alone. He shook his head as he released her and went to talk to Seth. Sue and Leah were still in the room with Harry. Emily and Sam sat next to another, but neither one was looking at the other. Paul was still missing from the group. Bella sighed as she went to find the missing pack member and give him the news. Paul stood in the same spot she had seen him last, still staring out at the parking lot. Bella walked up to stand next to him, trying to figure out what he was staring at so intently.

"He's gonna make it," Paul said. It wasn't a question.

"He's going to make it," Bella repeated, the first smile in hours crossing her face.

"Good."

"I just thought you'd want to know," Bella said before turning to head back to the group. It didn't seem like she was wanted here.

His deep voice stopped her. "Jake find you? He was looking for you earlier."

Bella sighed and stared out at the cars as she answered. "Yeah, he found me."

"He'll get over it. Give him some time."

"How did you-?"

Paul tapped his ear and, Bella could she the smirk on his face as he replied, "Really good hearing, remember?"

She huffed out the breath she was holding before facing the glass again. "What if he doesn't get over it? What if he can't be my friend anymore?" Her voice was soft, imploring him to ease her mind.

"Then you move on, make new friends."

The idea of not being friends with Jake anymore made her heart seize. _Why couldn't she just love him the way he loved her?_ Jake would never leave her like Edward had. Bella didn't respond. There was nothing she could say that wouldn't betray how scared she was at that thought. She was so tired of being alone all the time.

"Calm down. He'll come around. He cares too much not to."

"How do you know?"

"I've been in his head," came Paul's simple response. He didn't try and convince her, instead offering up what he knew as truth and leaving it up to her to accept it or not.

Bella nodded, satisfied with his answer. She could give Jake time. They stood in silence together, looking out at the cars and the empty grass field beyond the parking lot. "Hey, Paul," she finally said, turning to stare up at the confusing man once more.

Paul looked down at her as he answered. "Yeah?"

"Thanks for helping me today. I know you had better things to do than drive me around."

He looked away. "No problem."

"I'd probably still be out walking home if you hadn't shown up." Bella told him.

Paul exhaled gruffly. "Look. You seem to think I'm some sort of _nice_ guy. I don't want to be your friend. I'm not your little virgin buddy Jake." Bella's face was flushing red as he pushed her to arms length again, predictably. "There's a reason he keeps telling you to stay away from me. _Listen to him_."

He started to walk away when Bella stopped him, her finger grasping at his wrist. She knew she couldn't really stop him if he wanted to escape her. "Paul? I'm sorry I hit you earlier." Bella's voice was meek as she apologized.

But Paul just yanked his hand from her grasp and walked away, not sparing her another look. Bella deflated as she watched him storm away, wondering how many time she was going to have to watch people leave her before the night was over.

* * *

The heavy metal door slammed shut with a bang behind Paul as he stormed out of the hospital service exit. He started up his bike and kicked it into gear, tearing out of the crowded parking lot. He needed to put as much distance between him and Bella Swan as he could.

Pulling his arm away from hers had felt like torture, her light touch washing across his skin like wildfire. The further her got from her, the more the pain her presence lessened returned, prickling and spreading across his skin until it felt like nails being driven into every inch of his body.

One would think that he would be getting used to it by now, but time hadn't made the separation any less difficult to bear. For fucks sake, the feel of her hand against his face as she hit him had him begging for more. Phasing to attack that domesticated little shit, Jacob, had been the only way he could stop himself from having his way with her right there in the field next to Jakes house.

He had spent months avoiding any direct contact with her, sticking close enough to make sure she was safe, but far enough to give her some privacy. The idea of sitting in her room watching her sleep like that repulsive leech used to do filled him with disgust. No, she needed to be allowed to live her life.

It turned out that keeping that distance might have been the only thing keeping him sane, if it could even be called that. Having her delicate form pushed flush against him on his bike, her slender arms wrapped around his much larger body, firm breasts pressed into his back, heart pounding with excitement…after months of darkness, she filled him to the brim with her light. How was he supposed to return to watching her from afar, after he had felt the very touch his body had ached for, begged for, for months?

The further he drove from her, the more the darkness washed back over him, turning his soul back to the familiar black as pitch state he was used to. Letting himself think about the scant seconds he had her sweet, curvy body under his own would prove too dangerous. Those innocent eyes blinking up at him…that soft, throaty moan, her tender neck under his lips as he tasted her skin for the first time…fuck.

He was gonna have to burn his goddamn jacket if she ever gave it back. There's no way he could wear it after it had been wrapped around her gorgeous body. Her scent would drive him fucking insane. But holy hell, the sight of her wearing the jacket intended for his much larger frame had been so fucking hot. Like he had staked his claim on her in some small way. Maybe he could convince her to keep it, and wear it…often.

Paul's only hope was for Bella to heed his warning and stay far away from him. He couldn't keep himself away from her for much longer. And he knew what would happen if he gave in and let his beast have what it most desired. That innocence, her bright light, her pure soul…he would destroy everything that made her good, leaving her nothing more than a broken husk of what she once was. He wouldn't let that happen. He loved her enough to protect her from himself.

* * *

 **I edited this half asleep so feel free to point out any errors you notice. Trying to update once a week, but no promises. I hope everyone is having a fantastic weekend, and thank you for the reviews/follows/favorites!**


	6. Chapter 6

Bella woke the next day to find her truck sitting in the driveway as if it had never broken down. The keys were in the ignition and it looked vaguely shinier, like someone had washed it. Her dad had given her a ride home in the early hours of the morning when they had finally been shooed out of the hospital by Sue. They had made it home at close to four am, and her truck hadn't been in the driveway then. Had Paul called Jake about her truck last night? Bella groaned as she remembered the conversation she had with Jake yesterday. Paul said she should give her friend some time, but she needed to find Jake and thank him for fixing her truck. And maybe clear the air between them.

The note Charlie had left her on the kitchen table said that he had been at work since ten and was heading to the hospital for an update on Harry as soon as he left the station. It was noon now, so she would have plenty of time to go see Jacob and maybe even spend the afternoon with him now that she knew his secret. She didn't have any homework, thankfully having already met all the requirements for graduation. She just needed to complete the finals at the end of the semester in a few week's time. Bella was so ready to be done with high school in Forks.

Bella had no clue what she wanted to do with the rest of her life. Teach, maybe? She was putting off college until she had a better idea of what she was working towards. She had the grades, but no interest in taking a whole bunch of undirected general classes. She knew she'd figure it out eventually.

Throwing on her favorite pair of well-worn blue jeans and a snug-fitting green V-neck shirt, she pondered what to do with her still wet-from-the-shower hair. The long auburn locks hung in gentle waves halfway down her back. Shrugging, she settled on leaving it down to air-dry. She flounced down the stairs and snatched up her keys from their place by the door before wondering if she should leave Charlie a note about her plans. Planning to send him a text instead, she locked the door behind her and headed off to find her friend.

But once again, she couldn't find Jacob. Billy had given her the usual bullshit before Bella made it clear that she knew just what his son was doing with his free time. Billy's eyes had widened before he simply told her he didn't know where Jake was. So, Bella had gone to the beach, both Quil and Embry's homes, even the cliff she had seen the boys diving from now and again. Nothing. Which is how she found herself where she was now, walking up the steps of Emily and Sam's house. She knocked on the door quietly, but the large pane of glass in the front door didn't show anyone inside. She waited a minute before knocking once more and giving up. Someone would have answered by now.

Bella was walking back to her truck when she heard the door open behind her. Turning at the sound, she found a very different version of the bright and bubbly woman she had met just 24 hours before.

"Bella, you don't have to knock. Come on in." Emily's voice was flat as she beckoned her new friend inside. She was wearing a pair of flannel pajama pants and an oversized shirt that looked like it had probably been Sam's at one point. Bella wasn't one to insert herself into others personal lives, but should couldn't help but to wonder if Emily's sudden gloom had anything to do with what Leah had shared with her last night when they had bonded over their broken hearts in the bathroom.

"Hey, Emily. I'm sorry if I woke you up. I can come back another time. I was just looking for Jake." Bella walked back toward the house as she explained her presence, mentally kicking herself for her lack of tact. Emily had left the hospital the same time that she had left with Charlie. She shut the door behind herself as she followed the tired woman into the house.

Emily just shrugged as she leaned against the kitchen counter, folding her arms across her chest as she answered Bella. "He's not here. I haven't seen him since last night. Sam might know." She stared at the floor as she mentioned her fiancées name.

"Emily, are you ok?" Bella asked as she walked to lean against the countertop across from her. "You seem upset. It's none of my business – but if you want to talk…I'll listen." She hoped her voice sounded reassuring instead of prying.

Emily met her eyes before releasing a deep sigh. "It's Sam. He was really distracted yesterday by the whole thing with Leah…we barely got to talk about it. And then he didn't come home last night. I know he's alive and ok and everything because Jared stopped over a few hours ago and said he was just with Sam. But he won't answer his phone and he's not returning my messages…"

"Doesn't the whole imprint thing…I mean, from the way everyone explained it to me, it sounded like leaving you alone when you're upset and want him near would be really difficult or something."

"That's the thing!" Emily paced up and down the galley kitchen as she explained to Bella, "It's got to be bugging him. I know he knows that I want to see him. Talk to him. So why the hell is he fighting it? Leah was my _best_ _friend_ , practically my sister. I had to give that up because I knew it would kill Sam if I rejected the imprint. I barely even knew him when he imprinted on me. And now he needs to run off to wherever and go sort things through? Ugh!" She had grown more animated as she spoke, gesturing with her arms as she paced. "You know what? I can finally tell Leah everything. She may not forgive me, but at least I can give her the explanation she's deserved for months!"

"I don't know - With her dad and the wolf thing…maybe you should wait until Harry's condition is more stable."

Emily's face paled. "I can't believe myself. You're right, Bella. That would be so selfish. Leah is going through so much right now. I can't imagine how she feels."

Bella shook her head. "Me either." The conversation about Leah was starting to make her uncomfortable. She tried to delicately steer the subject back to finding Jake. "So, you think Sam might know where Jake is?"

"Yeah, he probably does. He keeps a pretty close eye on the boys. I'll give you his number. I don't know if he'll answer though." Emily grabbed a pen from the cup on the counter and handed her a slip of paper a second later. "I'm going back to bed, Bella. I hope you find him."

"Thanks, Em." Bella headed for the door, planning to give Sam a call in her truck.

"Bella?" Emily's voice called out behind her. "We do movie night here every Friday. You should come."

After assuring Emily that she wouldn't miss it, Bella bounced to her truck feeling lighter than she had in weeks. A month ago, getting together with friends to watch a movie would have sounded like torture. But now, she was starting to feel like she actually belonged here. Maybe it was having friends outside of Jessica and Lauren…Angela was great, but she was moving to New England at the beginning of summer, to get ready for college. Making a mental note to make plans with Angela before she left, she climbed up in her truck and dialed Sam's number from the piece of paper Emily had given her.

It only took two rings before he answered. "Hello?"

It didn't sound like Sam, though. It sounded like… "Jake?" Bella asked.

"Sam told me you were gonna call and gave me his phone. What do you want?"

"How did Sam know that?"

"He heard you at Emily's house, I think." Jake sighed. "He and Emily are going through some stuff right now, but he can't stay far away from her for real long."

"Why doesn't he just go talk to her, then?"

"Bella, it's complicated. I ran with him for a while last night, and his head is all tangled up. He loves Emily, but this thing with Leah is really messing with him. I don't know. You didn't call to talk about Sam and Emily. What do you want?"

"I wanted to talk to you. And thank you for fixing my truck."

"I didn't fix your truck."

Huh. That's interesting…who did, then? Only one other person knew where her truck even was. _Paul_. "Oh…sorry. It was in my driveway this morning and I just figured…"

Jake's voice sounded angry as he cut her off. "Yeah, well, I guess there is something going on between you and Paul after all, huh, Bella? He must really want it bad, too. He's never lifted a finger for any of the other slutty women that follow him around."

"What the hell, Jake." He was out of line. Bella knew he was hurting from their talk last night, but that didn't mean he could talk to her however he wanted. "I just called to thank you. Since I guess there's nothing to thank you for, I'll just talk to you when you decide whether or not we can still be friends. Bye."

"Bells, wait. I'm sorry." Jake's deep sigh blasted static across the line. "I didn't mean that. I do want to be friends. Could I…have a little time? To get my head on straight?" His voice was quiet and soft as he spoke. She could almost see him running a hand through his hair as he apologized.

"It's ok Jake. I'm sorry too. Of course you can have time. Call me when…whenever you're feeling up to it. I miss you."

"Miss you too, Bells."

After Jake ended the call, Bella sat in her truck as she tried to figure out what to do next. It _had_ to have been Paul that fixed her truck and left it back in her driveway for her. She had no idea what to make of that. The things he did just didn't match up with the things he _said_ to her. He spoke to her like she was a dumb little girl. Then he kissed her neck in the lawn and the look in his eyes said she was anything but a girl. She was a woman, and he wanted her. Edward had wanted her, yes. But in his own possessive way. He wanted to trap her, keep her caged in a glass box high up on a pedestal. And Jacob…Jacob saw her a different way. He still saw that girl he had chased when they were kids. To him, Bella was comfortable and familiar and _safe_. She had no doubt that Jake loved her, but he loved the version of Bella that he saw in his mind.

Paul was something entirely different. Bella shivered at the thought of having those lips on her skin again. She had felt so small under his massive body, his muscular weight pressing down and covering every inch of hers, but not crushing her. Surrounding her. Protecting her. She felt like a different person around him. More confident in spite of his scathing comments. Like she could be herself. Like she _was_ herself, maybe for the first time. For so long, she had changed her personality to suit the people she found herself around. She just wanted to fit in, be liked. Not stand out or be the center of attention, just be included.

But around Paul…she didn't feel like she was struggling to think of the right thing to say, or how she should act. She just _was_. He had told her last night to stay away from him, that he wasn't safe. But Bella didn't _want_ safe. For as deadly as Edward claimed to be, he really was the safe choice. He would plan out her whole life, Alice would dress her like a doll – all Bella had to do was show up. Besides, in the ways that mattered, Paul _was_ safe. She didn't know what it was about him that told her so plainly, but she knew he wouldn't hurt her.

So how was she going to thank him for helping her? She didn't know anything about what he liked. Maybe she could cook for him. At Emily's house last night, the pack had eaten more than she thought humanly possible. Mind made up, she headed to the La Push grocery store.

Bella wandered the aisles of the small store, trying to decide what she should make. She figured she couldn't go wrong with a couple of ribeyes and some baked potatoes. She had noticed a charcoal grill outside Paul's house yesterday, so she threw a bag of charcoal in her cart in case he didn't have any. The display of s'mores fixings caught her eye and she shrugged as she grabbed marshmallows, chocolate, and graham crackers and tossed them in the cart before heading to the check-out line.

By the time she made it to Paul's driveway, she had started to lose some of her nerve. She steered the truck down the pitted dirt drive as she tried to remind herself why she was doing this. Besides, he probably wouldn't even be home. She reached the end of the drive and her foot lifted from the gas pedal as she took in the beautiful sight that was Paul's house. It had been too dark last night to make out more than an outline of the house with her weak, human eyes.

His house was nothing like she had imagined. The A-frame wood home was built with pine logs and had stone accents and pillars. The steel roof was a reddish brown color, and giant log beams supported its weight. The porch she had stood on last night looked like it wrapped all the way around, and Bella could see a path that led from the back of the house down to a small lake that sat less than 100 feet away. There was a wooden pier with a bench built into it and a small fishing boat was docked beside it in the calm water. The pine trees had been thinned out a bit around the house and along the lake and there was a clearing where the fire pit sat. Otherwise, the house was surrounded on three sides by thick evergreen trees. Bella could see no other houses on the small lake. The place was breathtaking.

Shutting off her truck, she climbed down and looked around in awe. She couldn't see Paul's bike, or any other sign that he might be here. With a defeated sigh, she headed to knock on the door Paul had used last night. She was nearly to the three stairs leading to the porch when a sudden male voice made her scream and whirl around, nearly toppling over.

"I thought I told you to stay away from me." Paul was scowling at her as he walked from the forest behind her truck, wearing only a pair of faded and ripped blue jeans.

" _What_ _is_ _it_ with you and appearing out of nowhere like that? Do you get some kind of sick pleasure from scaring the bejeezus out of me?" Bella snapped at him, annoyed that he affected her like this. He sauntered towards her before casually leaning an elbow on her truck's closed tailgate and staring at her with a cold glint in his dark eyes. Bella couldn't help her eyes from wandering over his muscular arms and chest before following the trail of hair down to where it disappeared under the low-lying waist of his jeans. _Damn_ , he was hot. She forced her eyes back to his face, not trusting herself not to drool if she kept staring at his body.

His face was devoid of emotion, his mouth a hard line; but Bella thought she could see something like mild amusement dancing in his eyes. At least he didn't look annoyed anymore, his smirk growing wider as he looked pleased about something. "Why are you here?" Paul asked her.

"I wanted to thank you for fixing my truck. I was going to – well, if you wanted, I would…" Bella swallowed and took a deep breath. _Relax, Bella_. "I came here to thank you and make you dinner," she told him, finishing more confidently than she had started.

"I didn't fix your truck," Paul scoffed as he stared her down. "Didn't even notice it was gone." Paul shrugged a shoulder nonchalantly. "Must have been your boyfriend."

Bella cocked an eyebrow at him. "Do other people buy this bullshit? I can see right through your stupid smirk and that little-" She mimed his shrug back at him. For once, Paul looked surprised. _Ha!_ She liked that look. Making a mental note to call him on his crap more often, she continued. "Besides, _Jake_ already threw you under the bus when he told me he didn't do it." She smiled sweetly at him.

"I just wanted the rusty thing out of the way," gesturing at her truck as he spoke. "I can make my own food. I don't need anyone to take care of me," he told her, a scowl darkening his handsome face.

"Too bad, tough guy. I'm hungry now and I brought food. You can eat it or not, I couldn't care less," Bella informed him before turning on her heel and heading to retrieve the grocery bags from her truck. Calling back over her shoulder to him, she asked, "Grab the charcoal out of the back for me?" A grin broke out across her face when she heard his dejected sigh before he grabbed the bag out of the bed of her truck.

She brought her bags to the grill, pulling the lid off and almost running headlong into Paul. Her mouth went dry as she found herself inches from a set of strong, tattooed arms. She ordered her hands to stay at her sides and not to trace the tattoo across his chest and down his side like they wanted. How did he make carrying a bag of charcoal look _so fucking hot?_ He had it balanced on one shoulder and held the bag causally with a hand, reminding her of just how easily he had lifted her up like that the night before.

Paul cleared his throat and raised a brow at her with that signature smirk on his face before he asked her where she wanted it.

Where _did_ she want it? Her face burned bright red as she coughed. He means the charcoal. _The charcoal, Bella. Not you._ Not trusting herself with words, she just pointed at a spot near the grill.

"I'm gonna go get dressed. I don't want you burning my house down because you're distracted." Paul's teasing smirk pulled her out of her fantasy and she glared at his retreating form.

Ugh, he was _so_ cocky. She obviously wasn't going to burn his stupid house down. Snatching the bag containing the steaks from the table next to the grill, she stomped to the house to put them in Paul's fridge. She reached the door and paused. He _definitely_ wasn't the most welcoming person she'd ever met and he'd probably have something snarky to say if he found her inside uninvited. On the other hand, standing next to his door waiting to ask when he returned was sure to earn her another sassy comment. Deciding to just go for it, she pushed the unlatched pine door open halfway. She peeked around the heavy door as it creaked open. Seeing no sign of the home's cranky owner, She walked in and quietly shut the door behind her.

Bella's eyes widened as she took in the interior of the house. The polished natural pine floor looked like it covered the entire main level. The ceilings were vaulted and the same finished pine wood as the floor. The wood continued up the stairs, the staircase bracketed on either side by sturdy-looking pine logs that operated as railings. She walked into the barely furnished living room and gaped at the floor to ceiling windows that looked out at the lake. The view was incredible. The porch _did_ wrap all the way around the house. She could see a wrought iron table and chairs sitting on the porch through the giant windows.

She headed for the kitchen, not wanting to get caught snooping around his house. Her jaw dropped as she walked into the room at the back of the house near the door she had come in. _Oh my god, this kitchen is incredible_. A giant kitchen island with a butcher-block wood countertop sat in the center with several bar stools on one side. She ran her fingertips along the counter as she took in the cherry cabinets and stainless steel appliances. She opened the large French door fridge and set the steaks on an empty shelf. The fridge was completly empty except for beer. _Of course_. Rolling her eyes as she shut the heavy door, she turned to find Paul watching her at the other end of the kitchen. He had changed into a pair of dark jeans and a plain white shirt that was straining to stretch across his broad chest and shoulders. His face was unreadable.

Seriously, this was supposed to distract her less than before? _Good thing I'm all done with the fire-starting portion of the night._ Paul cleared his throat, and she snapped her eyes to his, breaking out of her trance. He stared straight back at her, his eyebrows raised and the beginnings of a smirk pulled at the corner of his lips.

"Uh…hi. Sorry for letting myself in." She gestured over her shoulder at the refrigerator. "I had to put the steaks in the fridge." He didn't respond to her babbling, and his expression gave nothing away. "This kitchen…the whole house – well, what I've seen, I wasn't snooping or anything. I just went in your living room. Its…" Bella trailed off as she tried and failed to find the words to describe how much she liked what she had seen, sweeping her hand out in the direction of the living room before dropping it loosely to her side.

He seemed to be able to surmise her meaning from the nonsense chattering she was doing because he dipped his chin once in a sharp nod. "Thanks."

He definitely wasn't one to waste words. Bella couldn't help but like him more for that quirk. In her experience, people often used many words to say very little. She vastly preferred Paul's straightforward to-the-point style.

"I should probably get the potatoes on the grill now," Bella told him, pointing the way she came before heading back outside before she could put her foot in her mouth again. She checked the coals and set several potatoes on the grill, deep in thought as she worked. It seemed like the more time she spent around Paul, the less she learned about him. Knowing what she did about vampires and werewolves, she should have been terrified to be out in this secluded place with only Paul around to save her if something went wrong. Hell, she didn't even know the man's last name. Instead of being afraid, however, she was growing more curious by the minute. She wanted more of him. Wanted to know more _about_ him, that is. She shook her head, trying to shake out the sudden thought of Paul's hard body pressed flush against her own, her hands gripping his arms tight as he worked his clever mouth down her neck. Her fingertips dug into the hard flesh of his upper arms as his teeth nipped at her collarbone, his tongue darting out to soothe the sting of his bite before he-. Bella groaned in frustration at her wandering thoughts. She couldn't keep thinking like that around him. She needed to keep her head on straight so she could get through this dinner without making a damn fool of herself.

When she headed back inside for the steaks a half hour later, Paul still hadn't returned outside. She didn't see him in the house, either. Maybe he had decided not to eat dinner with her after all. This was going to be one awkward meal if that were the case. She grimaced at the thought as she shut the fridge, steaks in hand. In the corner of her eye, she caught a glimpse of Paul heading towards her from the living room as she made to leave the kitchen. He wordlessly opened a cabinet near the huge white farmhouse sink and handed her a plate.

"For the steaks," he told her. Grabbing a pair of tongs from a drawer, he set that on the plate as well. "What do you want to drink with dinner?"

Bella pursed her lips to stop the laugh that bubbled up at his question. From the looks of the fridge, options were pretty limited. "What do you have?" She asked him primly, her eyes dancing.

Rubbing the back on his neck with a large hand, he said, "Uh, pretty much just beer or water."

"A beer, then. If it doesn't bother you that I'm only 18," Bella told him over her shoulder as she exited, leaving the choice in his hands. She didn't drink often. Or at all, really. But she'd had beer before, both with Charlie and back in Arizona with a mom who couldn't care less about any drinking she might do. "I'll meet you out back in a bit with the food?" She called at him from the screen door as she left the house.

"Sounds good," came his easy response as he headed past her to the living room.

When Bella took the steaks off the grill and headed up the stairs leading to the porch, she found Paul leaning against the railing with a beer in hand, staring out at the lake. The sun would be setting soon, and the sky was starting to dim into bright pinks, deep purples, and vibrant orange shades. Setting the plate on the table, she joined him at the railing, losing herself in the beauty of the moment. "Is it like this every night here?" She quietly asked after several minutes had passed. He hadn't acknowledged her presence other than to stiffen slightly as she joined him, and in turn, Bella had tried to hide the sting she felt at how uncomfortable she made him. When he didn't answer, she dragged her eyes from the sunset to find him watching her, that same unreadable expression back on his handsome face. Instead of pressing him for an answer, she contented herself in trying to read the look in his eyes.

Bella couldn't help feeling a little proud when she wasn't the one to break the impromptu staring contest, instead meeting him look for look until Paul turned forward again. "No. It's not always like this, Bella," his deep voice rumbled as he finally answered her question. She couldn't help but think he was really telling her something else, but for the life of her she didn't know what it could be.

The sun was dipping below the trees, the dimming sky alight with deep orange and pinks, and Bella sighed contentedly and dropped her head to lean it against his shoulder. She did it without thinking, lost in the beauty of the moment, and Paul's body jerked as he stiffened under the unexpected contact. "Sorry," she told him as she pulled back.

But before she could move away, she felt his fingertips digging her hip as he pulled her back to him. "It's okay," he told her, his voice quiet but firm. His hand dropped from her waist, but she felt his body relax slightly under hers as her cheek rested against his shoulder once more. The pair stood and watched the sun leave the sky in silence, the only sounds those of nature. The water gently lapping at the shore and a frog calling for a mate. When the crickets began to chirp, goosebumps covered Bella's arms. "You're cold," he stated. He spoke barely louder than a whisper, but the bass of his voice rumbled through his chest. Bella pushed her hand against the hard plane of chest, wanting to feel the vibrations under her fingertips. His giant hand covered hers, holding her in place as his other hand wrapped around her arm, pulling her closer to his warm body. Paul gently rubbed her arm, trying to chase away the chill and instead made her shiver at the feel of his rough hand on her skin.

He broke the contact abruptly, yanking his hands back and stepping away from her so fast she stumbled and caught herself on the railing. Paul raked both hands through his hair before stomping inside the house, sliding the glass door shut harder than necessary behind him. Bella wrapped her arms around herself as she watched him go, wondering what she had done wrong. Was he going to come back? Resolving to wait him out, she busied herself with filling their plates with food before sitting down and staring out at the lake again, feeling relaxed in spite of Paul's obvious issues with her. Several lights on the porch clicked on, startling Bella slightly before she heard the sliding door opening again. Something soft landed on her face as she turned to look. Pulling the fabric away from her eyes and mouth, she shot a glare at Paul before looking down at what he thrown at her. "Put that on," he ordered her roughly as he plopped down in the chair across from her.

Glaring at him again, she considered throwing the sweatshirt back just to spite him for ordering her around. But she _was_ a bit chilly, and the thought of wearing Paul's clothing sent a little thrill through her. She checked to see if he was watching her, but he had started eating, cutting off a giant bite of steak and shoving it into his mouth. Pulling the fabric over her head, she groaned internally as Paul's scent filled her head, making her dizzy. This man was doing something dangerous to her, melting her insides in spite of his cold, gruff nature. Settling the huge sweatshirt on her small frame, she looked back up to find Paul pulling a beer from a small ice-filled cooler she hadn't noticed next to the table. He twisted the top off before handing it to her, his eyebrows raised in silent question. She thanked him as she took the cold beverage and took a drink.

She had cut her first bite and was about to fork in into her mouth when she realized he was staring at her. "What?" She asked him, pausing her fork as she waited.

"You didn't have to do all this for me," he told her quietly.

Her heart thumped against her chest at the sincerity she heard in his words. "You didn't have to fix my truck, either. What you did was way better. I just couldn't think of how else to show my appreciation," she replied, taking the bite on her fork and watching him as she chewed.

"I didn't do it cause I wanted something from you."

"I know that. Now eat your food before it gets cold."

They ate together in comfortable silence before the rising moon's rippled reflection on the lake caught her attention. "I could stare at that all night. Something about the water and the moon and being out in the woods like this…it just makes everything else fall away, you know?" Bella took a drink of her beer and looked to him for an answer.

"That's why I built the house here," Paul said.

"You built it?" She asked him incredulously.

"Most of it. Called some buddies to help when it was time to raise the walls."

"Wait, seriously? You built this house? That's _amazing_."

"Just finished it last week."

Bella took her last bite and set her fork and knife down on the plate with a soft clatter. She washed it down with the last swig of her beer. "You're telling me, you built this _entire_ house, _by_ _yourself_ , and you just finished last week?" At his single nod, she continued. "That must have taken a really long time, though. Doing all this by yourself."

"Yeah, a couple of years." Paul had finished eating now as well and he leaned back in his chair as he answered her.

"But where did you live in the meantime?" He raised his brow at her question, and Bella felt her face flush involuntarily.

He studied her for a moment before answering. "My dad's old trailer, sometimes."

"And the rest of the time?" The look on his face told her she wasn't going to get an answer, and Bella stood and began to collect the dishes to bring them inside. She had finished rinsing the dishes in the sink when she turned to find him studying her once more. He was always doing that, and it made her wonder if she was as much of a mystery to him as he was to her. She didn't know how that could be. She was an open book. And besides, nothing about her was very interesting. Especially compared to Paul and all of his skills and abilities. "What?" Bella asked when it appeared he wasn't going to stop staring at her.

"Do you want to…I was wondering if-" Paul growled and dragged a hand through his hair in frustration.

Bella giggled at him, enjoying the sight of him flustered. "Spit it out, Paul."

"Wanna stick around for a while? I could start a fire. The bugs aren't too bad yet this time of year."

Bella's body flooded with warmth at his request. Maybe he didn't hate her quite as much as he made it seem. He could just be trying to be nice since she had made him dinner, but he didn't seem like the type to do anything he didn't want. "That sounds great, Paul. I'd like that."

His eyes snapped to hers, searching. For what, she didn't know. Apparently satisfied with what he found there, he nodded sharply at her before abruptly leaving the kitchen, and Bella heard the screen door slam shut a moment later. She couldn't help the huge grin on her face as she leaned back against the countertop.

She knew getting attached to a man like Paul was dangerous. She knew he wasn't the type to stick around, that a girl like Bella wouldn't be able to hold his attention for long. She could feel in her bones just how damaged he was.

But try as she might, Bella couldn't make herself care.

* * *

 **This chapter is a little longer than I was shooting for because I couldn't find a good spot to cut it off. Feel free to point out any errors. I try to catch them all, but I was a little less thorough** **in my editing today and I still don't have a beta.**

 **I really appreciate all the follows/favorites. Please let me know what you think, and I hope you all have a great weekend!**


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